ED arrested me as I stopped BJP from coming to power in 2019, was protective wall of MVA govt: Sanjay Raut

Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut has claimed the primary reason behind the Enforcement Directorate arresting him in an alleged money laundering case was because he stopped the BJP from coming to power in Maharashtra in 2019.

In his book, 'Narkartala Swarg' (Heaven in Hell), Raut also claimed action was taken against him as he was the "protective wall" of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government which came to power that year.

The book is about Raut's experiences in prison after ED arrested him in an alleged money laundering case in 2022, soon after the collapse of the Thackeray government. Raut later got bail.

"The primary reason behind (the ED) action against me was I stopped the BJP from coming to power. I also stood as a protective wall in defence of the Thackeray government. After that the Thackeray government collapsed.

"The (Eknath) Shinde government was formed through unconstitutional means. Both Shinde and (then Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis) must have agreed on one thing that if the government has to function, Raut must be behind bars," he claimed.

Raut said the BJP was hurt that it had to sit in the opposition despite bagging 105 seats (in the 288-member assembly in the 2019 polls).

"With Sena joining hands with Sharad Pawar-led NCP, the BJP had to sit in the opposition. The BJP considered Raut the reason why it could not form the government in Maharashtra in 2019.The BJP always had this regret," he claimed.

The BJP and the Shiv Sena had contested the 2019 assembly polls together. But the Sena parted ways with the BJP over the post of chief minister.

Later it became a part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi comprising the Congress and the (undivided) NCP. The MVA government was led by Thackeray.

The Rajya Sabha MP, known to be a fierce critic of the BJP, said the former ally could not see Uddhav Thackeray as the CM in 2019 so its leaders plotted to topple his government.

With the government having a majority of 170 MLAs, it was not possible that their 'Operation Lotus' would succeed, he said.

"Which is why central agencies entered the battlefield. Anil Deshmukh, Nawab Malik and Sanjay Raut were fixed as targets," he said.

The federal agency had decided upon a political agenda and had made a list of MVA leaders to be arrested in Maharashtra. The list included Deshmukh, Malik and Raut, the book claimed.

Deshmukh and Malik, both from the NCP, were ministers in the Thackeray government.

The ED had tightened its noose around 11 of the 40 MLAs (including Shinde) of the undivided Shiv Sena who revolted against Thackeray. The ED was also going to arrest some of the MPs of the undivided Shiv Sena, Raut claimed.