After announcing that his Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) would have no truck with the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in the Lok Sabha elections, VBA chief Prakash Ambedkar on March 29 singled out Sanjay Raut, spokesperson of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) faction, as being responsible for the breakdown in parleys between the MVA and the VBA.
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Speaking in Mumbai, Mr. Ambedkar, the grandson of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, targeted Mr. Raut for spreading misinformation about seat-sharing during talks between the MVA and the VBA, while accusing the Sena (UBT) leader of “stabbing the VBA in the back”.
“Sanjay Raut, how many lies will you tell?” Mr. Ambedkar said, speaking to mediapersons and alleged that it was Mr. Raut who had not invited the VBA for seat-sharing meetings with the MVA (comprising of the Sena (UBT), the Sharad Pawar-led NCP faction and the Congress) partners.
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“Sanjay Raut and the MVA are two different entities. Is it not true that you [Mr. Raut] had raised the issue of fielding a candidate against the VBA in Akola? On the one hand, he was creating this perception of forming an alliance with us, but on the other, he was plotting to undermine the VBA. He has stabbed us in the back,” alleged Mr. Ambedkar, who attacked Mr. Raut for falsely claiming before the press that the alliance with the Sena (UBT) and the VBA was strong and the latter was very much a part of the opposition MVA coalition.
Earlier, Mr. Ambedkar had shared a pointed picture on X. In this, a hand carrying a knife and bearing the legend ‘Sanjay Raut’ is shown stabbing a man representing the VBA.
The VBA president’s stark and vocal criticism of Mr. Raut comes as a shock to the Uddhav Thackeray-led Sena camp given that Mr. Ambedkar had forged an alliance with Mr. Thackeray’s party early last year at a time when Mr. Thackeray’s other MVA partners – the Congress and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP – had been extremely wary of taking Mr. Ambedkar onboard the MVA bandwagon.
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Through all this, Mr. Raut, ironically has remained one of Mr. Ambedkar’s staunchest supporters as expressed by his statements lauding the VBA chief in the media.
Meanwhile, Mr. Raut gave a guarded response to the vitriol spewed on him by Mr. Ambedkar, remarking, “Our fight is against those [meaning BJP] who are stabbing democracy in the back. I have nothing to do with Mr. Ambedkar’s remarks. We [the MVA] had given him an offer of five Lok Sabha seats. It is now up to him to decide whether he wants to contest or not with us.”
He further observed that Mr. Ambedkar had been making accusations against various parties and leaders including Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole.
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“Till yesterday, he was criticising other leaders in the MVA like Mr. Patole. Now, he is censuring me. I don’t know what to say… But I still believe that Prakash Ambedkar will not side with those who are stabbing the Constitution in the back by help them directly or indirectly,” said Mr. Raut, in a pointed remark at the VBA chief.
He clarified that the MVA had invited Mr. Ambedkar and his party to every meeting on seat-sharing discussions.
Congress leader Varsha Gaikwad today said she hoped that Mr. Ambedkar would still contest the election along with the MVA.
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Earlier this week, Mr. Ambedkar had announced an alternative ‘coalition’ of the VBA and community outfits and leaders like the OBC Mahasangh and Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange-Patil.
In that regard, former Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader from Pune Vasant More met with Mr. Ambedkar in Mumbai on Friday, sparking speculation about his potential candidacy for the Pune Lok Sabha seat (where the Congress has already announced the candidacy of MLA Ravindra Dhangekar) in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
Following the meeting with Mr. Ambedkar, Mr. More termed the discussions as “positive” but did not confirm whether he would contest on a VBA ticket.
Mr. Ambedkar indicated that an official announcement regarding Mr. More’s candidacy would be made around March 31 or April 1.