former-congress-mp-sanjay-nirupam-likely-to-join-shiv-sena-to-reveal-his-next-course-of-action-today

Sanjay Nirupam, recently expelled from the Congress is set to join Maharashtra's Shiv Sena under the leadership Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Nirupam is expected to reveal his "next course of action" today.

 

Nirupam, who faced expulsion from the Congress party on Wednesday, is said to be aligning himself with the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

 

Sources close to Nirupam revealed to a paper that hours before his expulsion from the Congress, plans were underway for him to contest the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections from a Mumbai constituency, a seat purportedly offered by Shinde's Shiv Sena.

 

"He has taken the decision to quit the Congress and wants to contest from a seat in Mumbai, which is likely to be offered to him by the Shinde Sena," the source disclosed.

 

Nirupam had expressed his desire to contest from the Mumbai North-West seat; however, the Shiv Sena, an ally of the Congress, had already announced Amol Kirtikar as its candidate. The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance has yet to declare its candidate from the seat.

 

This potential move marks a significant shift for Nirupam, who was previously associated with the undivided Shiv Sena before joining the Congress in 2005. He contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from the Mumbai North-West seat but lost to Gajanan Kirtikar of the Shiv Sena.

 

The rift between Nirupam and the Congress party escalated after his public criticisms of Uddhav Thackeray and the Shiv Sena faction.

 

Consequently, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge approved Nirupam's expulsion from the party for a duration of six years, effective immediately.

 

Earlier on Wednesday, the Congress had removed Nirupam's name from its list of star campaigners, indicating the deepening crisis within the party.