Maharashtra: Positive steps on Sena-Prakash Ambedkar tie-up, says Sanjay Raut

Mumbai: Days after Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray shared the stage with Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) chief Prakash Ambedkar, Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut said on Tuesday that positive steps were being taken towards stitching up a Thackeray-Ambedkar alliance.
Raut also slammed the Shinde-Fadnavis government over Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari's remarks on Shivaji Maharaj, saying that BJP has turned Raj Bhavan into a party headquarters and that Koshyari is a humble BJP worker.
Raut also dared CM Eknath Shinde to first travel to Belgaum and then meet PM Modi over the border dispute with Karnataka and to declare the disputed border areas which are in Karnataka as Union territories.
Raut said not just for BMC elections, Sena (UBT) and Prakash Ambedkar's VBA can come together for a state-wide alliance. "The issue of alliance is not limited to BMC. Everyone needs to come together. It is important for Maharashtra to give direction to the country. Prakash Ambedkar and Shiv Sena and other opposition parties should come together to bring about change. This can be a model for Maharashtra and the country. If Prakash Ambedkar stands firm against the present dictatorship, he can get huge support. Positive steps are being taken in that regard," Raut said.
On Sunday, Thackeray and Ambedkar were seen on the same platform at the launch of prabodhankar.com, a website on Uddhav's grandfather. In his speech, Uddhav had praised Prakash Ambedkar.
Raut said Governor Koshyari was a "humble" BJP worker. "There was never such anger against any governor in any state. People are agitating. The dignity of the post of governor has ended in Maharashtra because BJP has made the Raj Bhavan its party HQ. We're not ready to consider him as governor. He's a humble BJP worker," Raut said.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra government has issued a notification allowing one-day paid leave to voters from Gujarat working in border districts of the state to enable them to cast their vote in the assembly elections, reported PTI.