Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on June 7 said that the BJP-led NDA might form the government on June 9, but running it will be challenging for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
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He questioned the existence of the NDA, asking if leaders like Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar truly represent it, noting that their alliances can change.
“Today they support the NDA; tomorrow, they might join us,” the Rajya Sabha member said, adding that JD(U) leaders are already opposing the BJP’s Agnipath Scheme and advocating for discussions on the Uniform Civil Code (UCC).
Mr. Raut in reference to senior JD(U) leader K.C. Tyagi and Telugu Desam Party supremo Mr. Naidu said, “Whatever the PM wanted to convey during the political campaigns, whether it was about UCC or Agniveer, it faced opposition from their allies. Tomorrow, even the Ram Mandir issue may face opposition. While Mr. Modi said that if the INDIA alliance comes to power, Muslims will be given reservation, Mr. Naidu has advocated for reservation. What will Mr. Modi do? There are many issues under discussion. They want to form the government, let them try.”
Taking a dig at Mr. Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, Mr. Raut said, “While the BJP was aiming for a Congress mukt bharat (Congress-free India), we have made it bahumat mukt BJP (BJP majority-free). Nevertheless, the BJP still aims to form a government, which is the essence of democracy.”
Affirming Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s statement on the alleged stock market scam, the Sena (UBT) leader said, “Amit Shah has been actively involved in share market dealings; even after assuming the position of Home Minister, he maintained significant involvement in the share market. He should be held accountable for this scam.”
Mr. Gandhi raised allegations of Mr. Modi and Mr. Shah being “directly involved” in the country’s “biggest stock market scam,” where retail investors lost ₹30 lakh crore, and demanded a probe on Thursday.
Speaking about the Maharashtra Assembly elections, Mr. Raut stated, “As the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) put up a strong front against the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections and secured the majority, we aim to do the same in the upcoming election, targeting at least 180-185 seats. There is no big brother; we all supported each other. Whether it was Nana Patole, Sharad Pawar, or Uddhav Thackeray, we campaigned together and collectively won the seats.”
The elections for 288 Assembly constituencies in the Western State are scheduled around October this year.
