New Delhi (Agency): In a press conference held in Mumbai, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut made scathing remarks against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), accusing them of orchestrating a conspiracy to dismantle opposition parties. Raut claimed that the BJP employs a strategy of “washing off the taint of corruption” by admitting politicians facing graft charges into their ranks. He asserted that individuals who were previously labeled as corrupt suddenly become clean after joining the BJP.
Raut’s comments come amidst the power struggle within the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), where rival factions led by Sharad Pawar and his nephew Ajit Pawar are vying for control. He suggested that the BJP plays a role in creating divisions within other parties, leading to their eventual disintegration.
Earlier, during a public meeting in Bhopal on June 27, Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the NCP of involvement in corruption amounting to Rs 70,000 crores. He specifically mentioned the Maharashtra Cooperative Bank scam, as well as irregularities in the irrigation and mining sectors.
Ajit Pawar, after orchestrating a split within the NCP, joined forces with the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance in Maharashtra, along with eight senior MLAs, and took oath as the deputy chief minister. Opposition leaders, including the Congress, which forms the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance with Sharad Pawar’s NCP and Shiv Sena, criticized PM Modi’s allegations against the NCP.
Former Maharashtra CM Prithviraj Chavan expressed surprise at PM Modi’s remarks, while Congress general secretary KC Venugopal labeled it as “drama.” Additionally, in another setback for former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, Neelam Gorhe, previously aligned with Thackeray’s faction and serving as the deputy chairperson of the Maharashtra Legislative Council, joined the ruling NDA coalition of the BJP and the Sena led by Eknath Shinde.
The political landscape in Maharashtra remains tense as accusations and counter-accusations fly between parties, further intensifying the rivalry and power dynamics within the state.