Sanjay Raut : 'Local Decision Not Our Stand'; Raut's Reaction on Chandrapur Issue

The developments in the establishment of power in Chandrapur Municipal Corporation have caused a major stir in the state's politics. After being in discussion for a few days, the BJP finally established power and appointed their mayor. Sangeeta Khandekar of BJP has been elected as mayor, and Prashant Danav of Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray faction) has been elected as deputy mayor.

This is considered a major setback for the Congress party, which elected the highest number of 27 corporators in the municipal corporation. The 3 members of the Congress-supported Janvikas Sena were also with the Congress. Still, the BJP turned the power equations in its favor by gaining the support of 6 corporators from the Shiv Sena Thackeray faction with 23 seats. Additionally, there are other members like 2 from the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi, 1 from BSP, 1 from Shiv Sena (Shinde faction), 2 independents, and 1 from MIM. The BJP secured the mayoral position by reaching the required majority in the 66-member house.

Meanwhile, discussions arose in state politics as the Thackeray faction supported the BJP. Against this backdrop, Shiv Sena Thackeray faction MP Sanjay Raut reacted to the developments in Chandrapur. "The decision taken at the local level in Chandrapur is not the official stance of the party. We do not have a position to go with the Bharatiya Janata Party for power," he clarified, warning of action against those involved. "If local leaders have made some decisions for selfish reasons, they will face action," Raut also stated. He mentioned that no one from the party supported the incident in Chandrapur and recalled the clear stance taken by the party during the Mumbai mayoral election. He also thanked the Congress for the support given to the Thackeray faction in the Parbhani Municipal Corporation.

Meanwhile, MNS leader Sandeep Deshpande had accused the Thackeray group's corporators of being given one crore rupees each. Sanjay Raut responded to these allegations without naming anyone. “Those who were accused of taking money, were they themselves sitting with the BJP to count the money? Was their 20 percent commission?” he questioned. He clarified that these allegations are baseless. It is being speculated that this power shift in the Chandrapur Municipal Corporation may affect not only local politics but also the political equations in the state. Signs are emerging that more political accusations and counter-accusations may arise from these developments in the coming times.