Manoj Akhare, state unit chief of the Sambhaji Brigade, admitted that the members are in two minds about aligning with a radical outfit like the AIMIM.
After joining hands with the Owaisi brothers-led All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), former Lok Sabha MP and Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar's grandson Prakash Ambedkar is negotiating with the hardline Maratha group Sambhaji Brigade for an understanding in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
"Talks are on (with the Sambhaji Brigade)," said Ambedkar, who heads the Bharatiya Republican Paksha-Bahujan Mahasangh (BRP-BMS) and has formed the 'Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi'. Ambedkar had also met farmer leader Raju Shetti, who is a Lok Sabha MP from Hatkanangale in Western Maharashtra, for negotiations.
Sambhaji Brigade spokesperson Gangadhar Banbare confirmed they were in discussions with Ambedkar. "We are in talks with like-minded people for political alliances and have already forged social alliances with such groups," said Banbare, adding that they were also negotiating with the Congress and the NCP.
However, Manoj Akhare, state unit chief of the Sambhaji Brigade, admitted that the members are in two minds about aligning with a radical outfit like the AIMIM.
While Muslims form around 10.6 per cent of the population, the Dalits are at 14 per cent, and the Buddhist scheduled castes (erstwhile Mahars) account for about 8 per cent.
The Sambhaji Brigade, which is a front of the Maratha Sewa Sangh (MSS) formed by former public works department (PWD) engineer Purushottam Khedekar has a base in the Maratha community, especially in regions like Marathwada. In 2004, Brigade activists had attacked the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (BORI) in Pune to protest defamatory writings by American author James Laine against warrior-king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and his mother Rajmata Jijabai Bhosale.
The Sambhaji Brigade has been registered as a political party and the decision did not go down well with a section of the leadership and cadre including former chief Pravin Gaikwad, who formed a parallel outfit with the same name, which would stick to social activities.
Earlier, Sambhaji Brigade workers contested elections under the banner of the Shivarajya Party, which was formed by Prof MM Deshmukh, said Banbare, who fought the 2004 assembly elections from Biloli in Nanded district.
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