Post-Ketkar, Sena woos Methe as NCP keeps him at arm146;s length

One can always trust the Shiv Sena to fish in troubled waters. At a time when the NCP is compelled to keep...

One can always trust the Shiv Sena to fish in troubled waters. At a time when the NCP is compelled to keep a distance from Vinayak Methe, the Shiv Sena has stepped in to court the former senior state vice-president of Sharad Pawar8217;s party. Methe was recently in the news for his role in the violent attack on the Thane residence of Loksatta editor Kumar Ketkar after he wrote an article on a proposal to erect a statue of Shivaji in the Arabian Sea off the Mumbai coast.

Sources disclosed here on Sunday that the Sena has deployed Saamna executive editor and Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Raut to woo Methe. While NCP leaders stayed way from a recent function held at Shanmukhananda Hall in Mumbai to celebrate Methe8217;s birthday in order to check any impression of their complicity in the attack from gaining ground, Raut sat on the podium to greet him. He was, in fact, the only prominent leader who was present and the sources underlined that had a green signal from Sena supremo Bal Thackeray for participating in the function.

It is understandable that the Sena is tempted to wean the disgraced politician away from the NCP, because Methe heads a casteist outfit of the dominant Maratha community called the Shiv Sangram Sangathan, founded some 15 years ago. The Sena hopes that once Methe shifts his loyalties, the entire network of Sangathan workers spread all over the state would change sides along with him. On his part, Methe is sparing no effort to colour the whole episode with identity politics 8212;a case of a Maratha versus non-Marathas, and has attributed the party action to two non-Maratha leaders 8212; state NCP president Arun Gujarati and general secretary Gurunath Kulkarni.

However, Pawar is obviously mindful of Methe8217;s utility, because even while he has been sacked from the party post and served with a show-cause notice, he has not even been suspended from the NCP. It is another matter that this has not proved enough to satisfy Methe, who still feels let down by his patron. 8220;I served the party NCP for 12 years, but it did not take them even 12 minutes to remove me,8221; Methe is reported to have told his Mumbai audience.

When contacted for comments, Methe did not deny having been approached by the Sena. 8220;It is common for people from rival parties to invite you to join their ranks,8221; Methe told The Indian Express. However, he said, 8220;I continue to be in NCP and I have no intention to quit the party.8221; As for the invite to Raut, he said, 8220;I called him as a journalist. I called many other editors.8221; When asked about what he plans to do next, Methe said: 8220;I can not decide anything without talking to my leaders Sharad Pawar sahib and Ajit Pawar sahib.8221;

Previously, NCP general secretary D P Tripathi, while announcing Methe8217;s removal as state office-bearer, had tried to trace Methe8217;s violent actions to his roots in the Sena. Tripathi had reminded the media that Methe was once elected to the Maharashtra Legislative Council as an Independent with Sena support.