From 26/11 prosecutor to neta: BJP candidate Ujjwal Nikam's journey from black robe to saffron politics

Ujjwal Nikam has joined BJP ahead of Lok Sabha polls

"Sanju, don't come out of the court till I leave," Special Public Prosecutor warned film actor Sanjay Dutt.

"Yes, Sir,"Dutt nodded in obedience.

The trial of the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case was in the final stage and the special TADA court was holding daily hearings. After proceedings of the day, Nikam used to come out of the courtroom and brief the media. The courtroom was inside the Arthur Road Jail and the briefings were done outside the jail's gate. There used to be a high presence of media personnel on days when Sanjay Dutt, who was also a TADA accused, had to be attend the court.

Also read: BJP fields 26/11 terror attacks prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam from Mumbai North Central Lok Sabha seat
On one such day, Sanjay Dutt left the court as soon as the proceedings got over. The media persons rushed to capture his exit on their cameras. It took some time for him to navigate his way out of the crowd to reach his car. Nikam, who as per routine came out to brief the media, found that no media was there to get him on camera. Everyone had gone behind Sanjay Dutt. An irked Nikam had to wait for a few minutes for the journalists to come to him. It was due to this incident, Nikam warned Sanjay Dutt to step outside the court only after he left. Dutt had to obey his "order" because his fate was dependent on how fiercely or softly Nikam argued against his culpability.

Ujjwal Nikam has been a blue eyed boy of politicians in power irrespective of the political parties they belonged to. As a lawyer, Nikam had been a brilliant performer. From getting six years jail term for Sanjay Dutt to sending terrorist Ajmal Kasab and Yakoob Memon to the gallows, Ujjwal Nikam lived upto his expectations as a Special Public Prosecutor. He was appointed by the state to represent it in many high profile cases of terrorism and murders. Like a juggernaut, he kept winning case after case for the Maharashtra government with few exceptions like the Gulshan Kumar Murder Case where he was defeated.

Nikam had his share of controversies as well. When the trial against 26/11 Mumbai attack accused concluded, Nikam said that Kasab was fed biryani in the prison. This led to a huge uproar and the incumbent Congress-NCP government had to face embarrassment. Later Nikam retracted his statement and said it was done to deflect sympathy which was getting generated towards Kasab.

Ujjwal Nikam was portrayed as a hero by the media due to his record of consistent success. Considering his charismatic image, many political parties offered him tickets to contest Vidhan Sabha and Lok Sabha elections in the past from his home town Jalgaon from where he started his legal career as a district prosecutor. However, considering his profession, Nikam found it prudent to remain politically non-aligned. Aligning with a particular political party would have developed animosity with others and he would not have been preferred for high profile cases if the opposing parties came to power. However, it seems that Nikam is now in retirement mode and ready to begin a new innings as a politician. He has accepted BJP's offer to contest from the North-Central Mumbai Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra. The BJP will be banking upon his reputation as “someone who gets anti-nationals and terrorists punished.”

The North-Central Mumbai constituency has been represented by Poonam Mahajan, the daughter of late BJP stalwart Pramod Mahajan. She won twice from the seat in 2014 and 2019. However, the internal enquiry conducted by the BJP indicated that there was an anti-incumbency towards her and it would be risky to field her again. Other names were also doing the rounds as her likely replacement, including that of actress Madhuri Dixit and former Mumbai Police Commissioner Ahmad Javed.

In 2014, former Maharashtra ATS chief KP Raghuvanshi was offered a ticket by the BJP, however, he took time to decide and the party gave the ticket to Mahajan. It is interesting to note that Nikam is contesting from the same seat which was once represented by his accused Sanjay Dutt’s father Sunil Dutt and sister Priya Dutt. Varsha Gaikwad, the Mumbai Congress chief is contesting against Nikam on this seat.