Raut says MVA will win without Prakash Ambedkar

Mumbai: Indicating that he was still hopeful to bring Prakash Ambedkar on board of Maha Vikas Aghadi is still on, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Monday said that irrespective of whether Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi joins the alliance or not, the MVA is going to win the Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra.

“Even if the VBA is not with us, we will win, the MVA will win since we have the people with us. Had VBA been with us, our margins would have been higher. The people are with us, Prakash Ambedkar is a respected leader and his organisation is with us. We have made several requests to him. He should have accepted our proposal and we are still hopeful that he will accept our proposal,” Raut said.

VBA chief Prakash Ambedkar on Saturday said the alliance with Shiv Sena (UBT) doesn't exist any longer. He also said he would declare his next move on March 26. The Shiv Sena (UBT) and VBA had announced an alliance last January.

Raut termed Ambedkar’s move as a ‘one-sided’ and unfortunate decision. “Ambedkar should have discussed with Thackeray before making such an announcement. It is one-sided and unfortunate and Ambedkar should reconsider his decision,” he said.

“When Uddhav Thackeray and Prakash Ambedkar announced their alliance more than a year back, the upcoming Lok Sabha elections were not on the agenda. It was basically working together for the assembly and local bodies elections. The alliance was made with good intentions,” the Sena (UBT) leader said.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader also alleged that the Enforcement Directorate has arrested Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal because Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scared of him. He said that the INDIA bloc is planning a protest rally at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi and he along with other leaders will participate in the rally.

“Mr. Modi is afraid of Mr. Kejriwal. But after his arrest, the Delhi CM has become more dangerous, as he will now work from jail. So, the people will listen to him and will come in his support. Even during the freedom struggle, the leaders who went to jail came out stronger,” Mr. Raut said.