Mumbai: In a startling claim, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut has said that he may have been poisoned in jail, resulting in his contracting cancer.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi apparently warned him and suggested that he undergo a toxicity test to check whether poison had been added to his food.
The senior Rajya Sabha MP alleged that the current government was “so cruel” that it could go to any extent against those who oppose it, while speaking to reporters.
“Rahul Gandhi also suspected that anything can happen to people like us in jail,” Raut claimed, as quoted by PTI.
“The (cancer) disease started in the jail,” he alleged.
“Rahul ji had asked me to get a toxicity test done to ascertain if poison was added to food,” he said.
Political leaders who had spent time in jail were facing health problems, he claimed.
Raut also alleged that authorities could tamper with food or water in prison.
“There is a possibility in jail that people like us who raise our voice against the government go through this kind of treatment” he said.
Raut was arrested on August 1, 2022, in connection with the Patra Chawl land case and was released from Arthur Road Jail on November 9, 2022, after being granted bail, News18 reported.
He later documented his prison experiences in his book Narkatla Swarg (Heaven in Hell).
He was diagnosed with stomach cancer in Nov 2025 and underwent chemotherapy and radiation treatment at home and in hospital, the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader said.
Raut is a prominent face of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and a key opposition voice in Maharashtra. He has been known for his sharp criticism of BJP and its allies.
He has been active in Maharashtra politics for several decades and is considered one of the closest aides of former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.
Before entering politics, Raut worked as a journalist and is the executive editor of Saamana, the Marathi newspaper founded by Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray.