Encounter specialist Sharma joins Sena, set to fight polls

Mumbai: Encounter specialist Pradeep Sharma, who resigned after serving for 35 years in the police department, joined Shiv Sena Friday evening and is likely to contest the upcoming state assembly polls from Nalasopara constituency.

The former police officer joined the Sena in presence of party president Uddhav Thackeray, who tied ‘Shiv Bandhan’ on his wrist. Sena leaders sport ‘Shiv Bandhan’, a thread, on their wrists to indicate loyalty to the party.

Mr Sharma, one of the celebrated encounter specialist in the Mumbai police force, resigned from the police force in July this year. He held the rank of senior inspector then.

 Mr Sharma said he was always inspired by late Bal Thackeray, the Sena’s founder. “When I was in the service, I was always inspired by Balasaheb Thackeray. He always stood by us. Now I am getting a good platform to do people’s work,” he said.

Welcoming Mr Sharma to his party, Uddhav Thackeray said, “When he was in police service, he expressed using his gun. Now that he is starting a new inning, he will talk using his mann (mind).”

Speaking about the Assembly election and alliance with the BJP, Mr Thackeray reiterated that there was no issue with the BJP over seat-sharing for the Assembly elections in Maharashtra. “Everything between us is already decided,” he said.

Mr Thackeray, however, in an apparent light-hearted jibe at Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, said, “I will wait for the chief minister to prepare a list of Shiv Sena candidates and on which seats we could fight, then I will put that list before the party and we will accordingly decide how to move forward.”