Sanjay Nirupam, who joined the Congress after leaving Shiv Sena, is being named as a traitor for betraying his previous party founder, Bal Thackeray. However, he refuses to take the tag of a traitor saying he quit the Sena only because he had differences with the top leadership. He is a two-time Rajya Sabha MP who is contesting from North Mumbai West constituency against Shiv Sena’s Gajanan Kirtikar.
Claiming he did not work against the party when he was a part of it, Nirupam insisted that he is not a traitor and gave up RS seat due to ideological differences with Thackeray. He particularly mentioned to the Mid-Day, saying, “I haven’t said a bad word about Balasaheb.”
Discussing his pro-north Indian and anti-Marathi image, Nirupam mentioned it to be a “false narrative.” “I have explained to my voters my stand over the issue of hawking. People know me here for 25 years. If I was anti-Marathi, why would Maharashtrians come out in large numbers to support me? Voters in the slums and high-rises are with me. I am sure a majority of the 20% north Indians here will vote for me,” he told the Mid-Day.
Nirupam is very positive about the prospects of Congress in Mumbai since he feels the situation will change in the past couple of years. “Presently, the BJP-Sena cannot just write us off. We are clearly ahead in all six seats because of our party’s all-inclusiveness,” he added while talking to Mid-Day.