Shiv Sena leader Rahul Narvekar joins NCP, to contest from Maval

In what will be seen as a huge blow to the Shiv Sena in Maharashtra just ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the party spokesperson Rahul Narvekar has jumped ship and joined Nationalist Congress Party

Shiv Sena spokesperson Rahul Narvekar, who recently withdrew his candidature from the Maharashtra Legislative Council elections, on Monday joined NCP and will contest the Lok Sabha polls on the party's ticket from the Maval constituency.

He joined NCP in the presence of senior leader and deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar in Mumbai.

Sharad Pawar

Narvekar, son-in-law of senior NCP leader Ramraje Naik Nimbalkar, was the spokesman of Youth Wing of Shiv Sena, which is headed by party president Uddhav Thackeray's son Aditya.

The former Sena leader was apparently sulking over the withdrawal of his nomination and had recently met NCP chief Sharad Pawar.

His withdrawal from the fray had paved the way for nine candidates getting elected to the Legislative Council unopposed.

Narvekar, who was his party's face on English language news channels, had said he sit out of the Council elections on the direction of the Sena leadership.

Gajanan Babar, the sitting MP from Maval, recently quit Shiv Sena after being denied the ticket.

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