Omraje Nimbalkar a 'notorious traitor', says Sanjay Raut; levels Ram Mandir loot charges against BJP

Sanjay Raut also made allegations against the Ram Mandir trust and accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of misappropriating temple assets and donations. FILE PIC

Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) Member of Parliament (MP) Sanjay Raut on Monday trained guns on his party's rebel legislators, including Omraje Nimbalkar, while labelling them as "traitors", news agency ANI reported. He said that splitting Shiv Sena was akin to "tearing Maharashtra apart".

While addressing a press conference in Mumbai, he accused Dharashiv MP Omraje Nimbalkar of being a "notorious traitor" and said that Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray was aware of the individual who allegedly paid Nimbalkar Rs 15 crore.

"Traitors have no ideology. Omraje (Nimbalkar) is a notorious traitor. Splitting the Shiv Sena is akin to tearing Maharashtra apart. Uddhav Thackeray knows who gave Omraje Rs 15 crore in the first place," Raut said.

Targeting claims of development made by the rebel MP, he added, "The development visible in Dharashiv took place during the tenure of previous governments. Merely setting up sugar mills does not constitute development. Development is achieved through collective effort. If an MP believes that pocketing Rs 100 crore amounts to development, that is a flawed mindset."

Raut also made allegations against the Ram Mandir trust and accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of misappropriating temple assets and donations.

Speaking on the issue, he said, "A scam involving Rs 500 crore has taken place; the temple trust is responsible for it. The donation box of the Ram Mandir itself vanished. Silver and jewellery have gone missing. BJP members have embezzled the offerings, assets worth approximately Rs 500 crore."

Raut calls BJP leaders 'new Mughals', alleges Ram Mandir loot

Questioning the effectiveness of any investigation into the matter, he added, "What kind of report will an SIT submit regarding such people? They are compromised individuals. I appeal to RSS Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat ji. You contributed to the construction of the Ram Mandir, as did we all. The way the Ram Mandir is being looted now, it is not a Ghaznavi or an Alauddin Khilji who has come to plunder it."

Continuing his criticism of the BJP, Raut said, "You often ask who looted the temples. These are the new Mughals. The BJP is looting the temple. Modi ji repeatedly asks who looted Somnath; Ghaznavi did. So, who looted the Ram Mandir? The BJP's own Ghaznavis have looted it."

He further said, "Modi ji has not uttered a single word on this matter so far. What will the SIT do? It will submit a report, and that report will be suppressed. This government should have fallen long ago. It came to power with Ram's blessings and will fall due to Ram's curse."

Raut targets rebel MPs, warns history will judge them

This comes as Sanjay Raut, in a related post on X, sharply criticised the rebel MPs who reportedly arrived at Mumbai airport, describing the situation in strong terms and warning that future generations would remember them as traitors.

(With ANI inputs)