Sanjay Raut Calls Eknath Shinde ‘Jaichand’, Political Tensions Escalate in Maharashtra
Mumbai : Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut on Saturday launched a sharp attack on Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde following the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) election results. Accusing Shinde of betraying the party, Raut compared him to the historical figure “Jaichand,” triggering a fresh political controversy in the state.
Raut said that had Eknath Shinde not defected from the Shiv Sena, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would never have found space to establish itself in a major civic body like Mumbai. He claimed that the Marathi people would remember Shinde as a “Jaichand.” In a social media post, Raut drew a parallel with the Rajput ruler Jaichand, who in folklore is accused of siding with Mohammad Ghori against Prithviraj Chauhan, alleging that Shinde similarly betrayed the Shiv Sena.
Raut also levelled serious allegations against the BJP, accusing it of engineering splits in opposition parties to gain power. “The BJP wins elections by creating ‘Jaichands’. In every state and every city, they break parties and then come to power,” he said. Questioning Shinde’s political standing, Raut remarked that respect lasts only as long as one remains in power.
Commenting on the BMC results, Raut said that a Chief Minister enjoys immense authority, including control over the police, administration and financial resources, and under such circumstances similar outcomes are bound to occur regardless of who holds the post. He maintained that the contest in Mumbai was extremely close and should not be seen as a one-sided BJP victory.
Raut asserted that Shiv Sena (UBT) and its allies have a strong presence in the BMC and that the opposition will keep a strict watch on the ruling alliance. He claimed that the opposition has 105 members in the civic body and would not allow Mumbai to be “sold off.” He further said that if needed, they are prepared to fight till the end against what he described as a “contractor-driven regime.”
Following Sanjay Raut’s sharp remarks, political rhetoric and confrontation in Maharashtra have intensified further.
