Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) MP Sanjay Raut. File
| Photo Credit: PTI
Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Raut on Tuesday alleged that there was a threat to his life from Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s son, Lok Sabha member Shrikant Shinde.
“Shrikant Shinde gave a supari [contract] to Raja Thakur, a Thane-based gangster to kill me,” Mr. Raut said in a letter to the Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar, and to the Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and the Thane City Police.
The Uddhav Thackeray loyalist, who is also the executive editor of Shiv Sena (UBT)’s mouthpiece, Saamana, said that he had confirmed information regarding the same. “I am informing you as a responsible citizen,” Mr. Raut said in his letter.
Reacting to his allegations, leaders from the Shinde camp called it a “cheap stunt”. “Mr. Raut is doing a cheap stunt to gain sympathy. There is no doubt that there should be a thorough probe into the matter,” Aurangabad West MLA Sanjay Shirsat from the Shinde camp said, adding that the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader does a lot of stunts, which have “no substance”.
Worli MLA Aaditya Thackeray, former Maharashtra Minister and Mr. Uddhav Thackeray’s son, said that his party colleague’s complaint should be taken seriously. “Unfortunately, these traitor MLAs are not being controlled at all,” he said.
Meanwhile, leaders from the Shinde camp on Monday alleged that Mr. Raut was doing “good work of destroying Uddhav Thackeray”. “He [Mr. Raut] is doing a good job of destroying Uddhav Thackeray. His work is slowly and steadily helping us. We wish him good luck. Our supporters have started filing complaints against him for his derogatory remarks made on Chief Minister Shinde,” chief whip of the Shinde-led Shiv Sena, Bharat Gogawale, said.
