Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut Admitted To Mumbai's Lilavati Hospital

The Shiv Sena has 56 MLAs, while the NCP and Congress have 54 and 44 MLAs, respectively, in the 288-member House.

Mumbai: Senior Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut. PIC/PTI.

Mumbai: Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Monday was admitted to Lilavati hospital. Reports say he had an appointment with a doctor related to angiography procedure. As the Shiv Sena snapped ties with the BJP-led NDA, its party leaders huddled at the Taj Lands End in Bandra where Raut was also present this afternoon. Hoever, news agency IANS reported that he was admitted to the hospital after having complained of uneasiness. Dr. Jalil Parkar, heart specialist confirmed to IANS that he was admitted to the hospital, but declined to comment on his health condition. A party spokesperson, requesting anonymity, termed it "a routine check-up and probably necessitating an angiography," but refused to give details. Sanjay Raut has off late emerged as Uddhav Thackeray's most trusted lieutenant and has been the most trenchant critic in the party to lash out at its 30-year-old ally the Bharitya Janata Party. He is  also the Executive Editor of its Marathi newspaper 'Saamana' and writes a weekly column in the publication. Reports say Raut's columns are similar to that of Sena patriarch late Balasaheb Thackeray. His scathing attack on the BJP had prompted the RSS mouthpiece Tarun Bharat to compare Thackeray and Raut to ‘Vikram and Betal’.

Meanwhile, Uddhav Thackeray and NCP chief Sharad Pawar met today shortly after the Sena's Heavy Industries Minister Arvind Sawant met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and tendered his resignation from the Union Cabinet. The NCP has not yet announced its decision on whether it will support the Shiv Sena, and said it was waiting for the Congress'final call on it. After BJP refused to form government in Maharashtra, the state  Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari has asked Shiv Sena to show his willingness to form the government by 7:30 pm today. The Shiv Sena has 56 MLAs, while the NCP and Congress have 54 and 44 MLAs, respectively, in the 288-member House.