Modi, Shah and Fadnavis worked to defeat Gadkari in Nagpur, says Sanjay Raut

Raut further wrote that Fadnavis campaigned for Gadkari only when it became apparent that the Union minister was not going to be defeated.
“Parabhav hoot nahi yachi khatri patlyawar Fadnavis hey nailajani Nagpurat pracharala utarle… (When it became evident Gadkari was not going to get defeated, Fadnavis had no option but to campaign for him)”.

Raut, who is the executive editor of Saamna, has also alleged in his column that “if Amit Shah gets power again, he will finish Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath”. In Uttar Pradesh the campaign is, he wrote, “Yogi ko bachana hain tau Modi ko jana hain (If you have to save Yogi Adityanath, Modi has to go)”.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader’s claims have invited strong reactions from the state BJP, which rubbished them as absurd.

Senior BJP minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said, “Sanjay Raut has this habit of making sensational statements. But this time he has made ridiculous allegations that are not only false but utter nonsense.”

State BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule said, “Sanjay Raut is known for making statements which are never based on facts. This time he has crossed all the limits of decency by making wild and baseless allegations.”

Bawankule further said that Raut should focus on his own party, which the BJP leader said had been reduced to a handful of members. “After the results on June 4, even those with the Shiv Sena (UBT) may not remain,” he added.

Nitin Gadkari, Union minister for road transport and highways, is seeking re-election from the Nagpur Lok Sabha constituency, where polling took place in the first phase, on April 19. The contest was between the BJP’s Gadkari and the Congress’s Vikas Thakre.