Former MP and firebrand farmers' leader Raju Shetti is unlikely to join INDIA. He dropped this broad hint after meeting with union minister Nitin Gadkari on Friday.

Shetti said he will not blindly support the opposition alliance just because they are opposed to the BJP-led NDA. The 56-year-old was a member of the Lok Sabha for two terms from 2009 to 2019. He represented Hatkanangale Lok Sabha constituency in western Maharashtra.

Shetti, who started his political career with Sharad Joshi's Shetkari Sanghatana, now heads the Swabhini Paksha, which draws strength from his Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana. He enjoys the image of being an aggressive leader, having taken up many issues close to the hearts of farmers and launched agitations against the ruling government, be it Congress-NCP or the BJP.

In his second term in 2014-19, he was part of the BJP-led NDA. However, he became disillusioned by BJP's agriculture policies and parted ways. In 2019, he had contested elections as a UPA-backed candidate from Hatkanangale but was defeated by united Shiv Sena's Dhairyasheel Mane by close to one lakh votes. Dhairyasheel Mane, the sitting MP, is now with the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.

Hence, there has been a pressure on Shetti from his cadre to align with the Congress-led INDIA as he could then stake claim for a ticket from Hatkanangale and could possibly get support from Uddhav-loyalist Shiv Sainiks and Sharad Pawar-loyalist NCP cadre, who have a strong presence in the LS constituency.

Shetti, however, has made it clear that his party will not get dragged behind any alliance. “What is the purpose of election, just to remove A alliance and to install B alliance in power. What benefit will farmers and commoners get from this. Unless we get a clear response on the issues close to farmers, we will not get dragged behind any alliance,” said Shetti.

Shetti's Swabhimani Party has been facing internal turmoil for sometime now. Ravikant Tupkar, a close aide of Shetti, had been facing disciplinary action till recently. The party has strong presence in western Maharashtra's Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur and Solapur districts and in some pockets of the Vidarbha region. It can influence election results in at least a couple of parliamentary constituencies and a handful of assembly segments.

Shetti has been invited for the INDIA meeting in Mumbai on August 31 and September 1. Congress state president Nana Patole had a telephonic conversation with Shetti and invited him for the meeting. Shetti, however, said his experience with Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) has not been good and he won't be attending the meeting.