Shiv Sena MLA Pratap Sarnaik has said that the party should team up with the BJP again to save its leaders from being ‘harassed’ by central agencies. In a letter to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, legislator Pratap Sarnaik has said the former allies must patch up, especially for the many upcoming corporation elections, including those of Mumbai and Thane.
Sarnaik, who represents Thane’s Ovala-Majiwada constituency in the state Assembly, said though the BJP and the Shiv Sena are not allies anymore, their leaders have good relations and that “we should make use of this”.
“Several central agencies are behind me and other Shiv Sena leaders like Anil Parab and Ravindra Waikar, and they and their families are being harassed,” Sarnaik wrote in his letter which reached the Chief Minister’s Office on June 10.
“If the Shiv Sena and the BJP come together again, these leaders can be spared of such harassment,” he wrote.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had, last year, raided several properties belonging to Sarnaik in connection with a money laundering case. His son, Vihang Sarnaik, too, was questioned by the agency.
Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil said BJP will mull joining hands with Sena only if Uddhav considers it.