Sanjay Raut News / Will Sanjay Raut be arrested again? Thackeray said - ED is a 'dacoit', it should be stopped

Sanjay Raut News: Shiv Sena (UBT) President Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday accused central investigating agencies of taking betel nut from the Center to harass political opponents, calling them dacoits. An angry Thackeray said that the central agencies behave like 'pets' of the Centre. They target political opponents by taking betel nut from the central government. These should be closed. Along with this, he also feared the arrest of Sanjay Raut again. He was speaking while welcoming party MP Raut, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in an alleged money laundering case. He had reached Thackeray's private residence 'Matoshree' from jail for 101 days.

Raut can be implicated in false cases again: Thackeray

Referring to the special PMLA court's decision, which held Raut's arrest by the ED illegal, Thackeray said the central government may still try to implicate him (Raut) in other false cases. Thackeray said, "Sanjay Raut is the leader of Shiv Sena but more than that he is my close friend. The jail time was as difficult for him as it was for us because we are one family. In times of crisis, they not only stood behind us but also fought together. Sanjay Raut was arrested illegally, further efforts can be made to arrest him by implicating him in more than one case.

Thackeray said the court's decision is a warning to the Center and all those (rebels) who left. The wheel of time keeps changing, (Deputy Chief Minister) Devendra Fadnavis should realize that times change, tomorrow it can happen to him too.

'If the Center had a principle, Raut would never have been arrested'

The Shiv Sena (UBT) chief accused the Center of doing politics of vendetta and called upon the public to raise their voice against it. Thackeray said, had the Center had a principle, Raut would never have been arrested. The whole country is watching the conduct of the government and the misuse of central investigative bodies.

Aaditya Thackeray hugs Raut

Earlier, Uddhav gave Raut a warm welcome. His wife Rashmi performed an aarti, congratulated him and applied tilak, while a smiling Aaditya Thackeray hugged Raut. Several other party leaders distributed sweets. Thackeray described Raut as a genuinely true friend who can be relied upon till the end, who can never stab him in the back. He said that despite all the pressure and harassment, Raut did not get scared or ran away and stood firmly with the party.

Later, Raut, who also met Nationalist Congress Party president Sharad Pawar, said that after a few days of rest, he would visit Maharashtra, meet party workers and the general public to hear their grievances. On Thursday morning, Raut expressed his inability to attend the Congress' Bharat Joda Yatra passing through the state due to health reasons. According to a party leader, a high-level delegation of Shiv Sena (UBT), comprising Aaditya Thackeray and other senior leaders, will march along with Rahul Gandhi on Friday.