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National

Sena expels absenting MP

Special Correspondent

MUMBAI: The Shiv Sena on Wednesday expelled Tukaram Renge Patil, MP, from the party for not being present during the trust vote in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

According to party MP Sanjay Raut, the decision was taken by the Sena chief Bal Thackeray.

The party is still unaware of the whereabouts of its MP from Parbhani. However, Mr. Patil spoke to his son on Wednesday morning. He is believed to have switched loyalties to the Congress, but this claim has not been confirmed.

In Parbhani, Mr. Patil’s house is guarded by the police. His son, Balasaheb Renge Patil, told The Hindu that he spoke to his father on the phone at 8 a.m. “He is fine but did not say where he was. My father has said he will get in touch with the media in a few days.”

On Tuesday, angry Shiv Sainiks protested outside his house. But now things calmed down, he said.

Mr. Renge Patil had left home for the meeting of Sena MPs with party chief Bal Thackeray on July 19. But he was the only one absent at that meeting.

Both he and Haribhau Rathod of the BJP, founder-president of the All-India Banjara Kranti Dal, defied the party whip and were absent during the Lok Sabha vote. BJP sources said Mr. Rathod’s absence was unexpected.

Maharashtra BJP president Nitin Gadkari has demanded that narco-analysis be done on both Mr. Renge Patil and Mr. Rathod and alleged that they were lured by Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh of the Congress. “There is no room for people like Rathod in the party,” he said. (He has since been expelled).

Partymen held a demonstration outside his house at Mulund, a Mumbai suburb, and also attacked his house in Yavatmal, his constituency.

Mr. Rathod was private secretary to BJP national general secretary Gopinath Munde from 1997 to 1999.

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