On Shivaji's 'wagh nakh' coming to India, Sanjay Raut says: Insult...what will you do?

Shiv Sena is the real wagh nakh of Shivaji, Sanjay Raut said. Shivaji's tiger claw will return to India on a three-year loan from a UK museum.

As Maharashtra ministers are all slated to travel to the UK to bring wagh nakh, the tiger claw weapon, believed to have belonged to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) MP Sanjay Raut said it's an insult to the wagh nakh as Shiv Sena is the real wagh nakh (tiger claw) of Shivaji. The weapon is coming to India on a three-year loan. "What will you do by bringing the weapon which was used to protect the self-respect and integrity of Maharashtra? You have made the state a slave of Delhi," Sanjay Raut said referring to the split of the Sena helmed by chief minister Eknath Shinde and engineered by the BJP.

Sanjay Raut asked what is the use of bringing Shivaji's tiger claw back when Maharashtra has been turned into Delhi's slave.

"It is an insult to the wagh nakh, which is the pride and matter of self-respect for Maharashtra. Shiv Sena is the real wagh nakh of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, which (the party) has fought all obstacles coming in way of the state," Sanjay Raut said.

What is Shivaji's wagh nakh?

Maharashtra culture minister Sudhi Mungantiwar and officials from his department will go to the UK on October 3 to get the wagh nakh which Shivaji believed to have used to kill Bijapur sultanate's general Afzal Khan in 1659. These metal claws were concealed in Shivaji's hand and he slit Afzal Khan open with these claws.

According to reports, the claws then came into the possession of James Grant Duff, an officer of the East India Compan and were then gifted to the Victoria and Albert Museum. The museum will sign a MoU with the Maharashtra government to hand the wagh nakh to India for an exhibition.

“The story of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s triumph over Afzal Khan is legendary, so we are delighted that the ‘Tiger Claws’ will return to India as part of the 350th anniversary events where they can be enjoyed as part of the celebrations. We hope that their display might also enable new research into their history and look forward to working in partnership with colleagues in the months ahead as we develop plans for their display,” a spokesperson of the museum said.

(With PTI inputs)