Pune: Relations between Swabhimani Paksha chief Raju Shetti and his close party aide, Minister of State (Agriculture and Marketing) Sadabhau Khot hit a new low on Tuesday when the latter returned a loan of ₹2.5 lakh he had taken for a medical emergency in the family.
The widening rift within the Swabhimani Paksha, a minor NDA ally in the State, is also being put down to Mr. Khot setting his sights on formally joining the BJP.
In a letter to Mr. Shetti, the MP from Hatkanangle, Kolhapur district, Mr. Khot rebuked him for allegedly publicising the loan, apparently given to the latter’s father for medical treatment. “In any political party or movement, a leader never publicises help he might have given to his closest associates. If he does so, there will be no difference between a leader and a common party worker. By doing this, [Mr. Shetti] has given a practical example of how a leader ought not behave,” the letter read.
Claiming that now, party workers will think twice before approaching their leader for help, he wrote that his father always advised him to be free of the moneylender at the earliest, especially when it is someone who talks about it publicly. “My father said to return the money as soon as possible.” The sum, Mr. Khot said, has been transferred to Mr. Shetti’s bank account via RTGS.
The two leaders have been at loggerheads following the Kolhapur Zilla Parishad elections after Mr. Shetti allegedly refused to nominate Mr. Khot’s son, Sagar, as a candidate. Clearly disgruntled, Mr. Khot has pointedly stayed away from a major pro-farmer rally led by the party chief.
