From jail to legislature: How Saeed Khan ‘Gabbar’ became Shiv Sena’s first Muslim MLC
But among the winners was one candidate whose political journey stood apart from the rest.
Saeed Khan, better known in political circles and his hometown of Pathri as "Gabbar", won the Parbhani-Hingoli Local Authorities constituency and in the process became the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena's first Muslim MLC. (Image enhanced by ChatGPT) When the results of the Maharashtra Legislative Council elections started coming in on Monday, the headlines were largely about the Mahayuti’s dominance. The ruling alliance won 16 of the 17 seats at stake, including six that were elected unopposed.
But among the winners was one candidate whose political journey stood apart from the rest.
Saeed Khan, better known in political circles and his hometown of Pathri as “Gabbar”, won the Parbhani-Hingoli Local Authorities constituency and in the process became the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena’s first Muslim MLC.
Just four years ago, Khan was in jail after being arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case. On Monday, he was among the faces celebrating the Mahayuti’s victory.
Khan, 46, comes from Pathri in Parbhani district. A Pathan by community, he began his career as a contractor and gradually built contacts with local politicians. The nickname “Gabbar” has stayed with him for years and is now so widely used that many people in the region know him more by that name than his actual one.
His political rise began after he became a close associate of former Shiv Sena MP Bhavana Gawali. Through that association, Khan steadily expanded his influence in the region.
The turning point came in 2021 when the ED arrested him in connection with alleged irregularities in the Mahila Utkarsha Pratishthan, a trust headed by Gawali. The agency alleged that trust funds worth around Rs 7 crore had been misappropriated and claimed that Khan and others had gained control over the trust through forged documents.
Khan spent more than nine months in jail before securing bail from the Bombay High Court in July 2022.
The timing proved significant. Within days of his release, Gawali joined Eknath Shinde’s camp after the Shiv Sena split. Khan too found space in the new political arrangement.
Over the next few years, he cultivated close ties with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and MP Shrikant Shinde. The party later appointed him as the head of its minority wing, giving him a larger organisational role.
There was a brief bump in the relationship before the 2024 Assembly elections. Khan wanted to contest from Pathri but the constituency went to the NCP under the Mahayuti’s seat-sharing formula. Unhappy with the decision, he contested as a Rashtriya Samaj Paksha candidate and polled more than 55,000 votes. Though he lost, the performance demonstrated his influence in the constituency.
Soon afterwards, he returned to the Shiv Sena fold.
Local leaders in Pathri say Khan’s biggest political strength has been his ability to secure government funds and projects for the area. Over the last few years, he has built a strong network across local bodies in Parbhani and neighbouring districts.
That influence became visible during the Pathri Municipal Council elections, where the Shiv Sena managed to wrest control of the civic body. Khansuccessfully backed his brother for the post of municipal council president, defeating candidates backed by the camp of veteran local leader Babajani Durrani.
The Legislative Council nomination was seen by many in the region as a reward for that organisational work.
In the election, Khan secured 242 votes against Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Vivek Navandar’s 159. Independent candidate Sushilkumar Deshmukh received 56 votes, while eight votes were declared invalid.
The victory gives the Shinde-led Shiv Sena its first Muslim representative in the Legislative Council, a distinction that carries significance at a time when the party is trying to broaden its social base beyond its traditional support groups.
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