Sanjay Raut slams rebel MPs as 'traitors', attacks Eknath Shinde

Sanjay Raut slammed rebel Shiv Sena MPs as "traitors" after six of them joined the Eknath Shinde-led faction. Shinde welcomed the MPs, calling the move a continuation of the 2022 split to save Balasaheb Thackeray's original Shiv Sena.

Raut Calls Rebel MPs 'Traitors'

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday launched a strong attack on rebel party MPs and also slammed Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. In a post on X, Raut termed the party rebels as "traitors". "...Chitragupta has begun tallying their sins! Their next generation will say 'my father was a traitor, my husband was a traitor, my grandfather was a traitor'" he alleged in the post.

Later, speaking to reporters at a meeting of Shiv Sena (UBT) MLAs, Raut intensified his criticism of Shinde. "Eknath Shinde has given birth to six traitors. A caesarean surgery will have to be performed further for things to be properly managed," he remarked.

Earlier in the day, Raut accused rebel MPs of abandoning the ideology of Shiv Sena, founded by Balasaheb Thackeray. "Traitors have no ideology. Omraje (Nimbalkar) is a notorious traitor. Splitting the Shiv Sena is akin to tearing Maharashtra apart," Raut alleged.

Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray is set to launch a Maharashtra-wide outreach campaign beginning June 27, visiting constituencies represented by rebel MPs.

Shinde Welcomes 6 UBT MPs, Calls it 'Second Phase' of Revolt

Six Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) Lok Sabha MPs joined the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in Mumbai on Monday. Sanjay Haribhau Jadhav, Bhausaheb Rajaram Wakchaure, Omprakash Bhupalsingh Nimbalkar, Sanjay Dina Patil, Sanjay Uttamrao Deshmukh, and Nagesh Bapurao Patil Ashtikar joined Shiv Sena here.

Eknath Shinde, who addressed a press conference, said that six Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) MPs had joined the Shiv Sena and noted that it was a continuation of the 2022 political split that was aimed at "saving the original Shiv Sena." He said the MPs have joined the party for the development of their constituencies rather than personal gain.

"Today we welcome all these six kattar Shivsainik MPs into the original Shiv Sena of Balasaheb Thackeray and Anand Dighe. In 2022, we carried out a revolt when 40 MLAs joined us, and that was to save the Shiv Sena of Balasaheb. This is the second phase of that same movement. We are here to preserve the ideology of Shiv Sena and Balasaheb, and that is why these MPs have decided to come to the original Shiv Sena," Shinde said. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)