The Eknath Shinde faction is poised to gain six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs, a move orchestrated over nearly a year by Shrikant Shinde, son of Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, and internally codenamed "Operation Tiger." This clandestine operation aimed to rally disgruntled MPs to the Shinde camp, involving discreet planning by a select few within the Shiv Sena, including two state ministers. The pivotal moment occurred on June 16 when Shrikant Shinde arranged private flights for the MPs to Delhi, where they stayed in a Noida hotel before submitting a resolution to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla the following day, securing the allegiance of five MPs before a key Uddhav Thackeray meeting. Among those confirmed to cross over are Hingoli MP Nagesh Bapurao Patil Ashtikar and Omprakash Rajenimbalkar, who cited reasons like a fund crunch for their defection, drawing sharp criticism from Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, who accused the MPs of succumbing to "greed" and betraying the mandate of voters who supported the INDIA bloc.

The Eknath Shinde faction is poised to gain six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs, a move orchestrated over nearly a year by Shrikant Shinde, son of Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, and internally codenamed "Operation Tiger." This clandestine operation aimed to rally disgruntled MPs to the Shinde camp, involving discreet planning by a select few within the Shiv Sena, including two state ministers. The pivotal moment occurred on June 16 when Shrikant Shinde arranged private flights for the MPs to Delhi, where they stayed in a Noida hotel before submitting a resolution to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla the following day, securing the allegiance of five MPs before a key Uddhav Thackeray meeting. Among those confirmed to cross over are Hingoli MP Nagesh Bapurao Patil Ashtikar and Omprakash Rajenimbalkar, who cited reasons like a fund crunch for their defection, drawing sharp criticism from Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, who accused the MPs of succumbing to "greed" and betraying the mandate of voters who supported the INDIA bloc.

The Eknath Shinde faction is poised to gain six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs, a move orchestrated over nearly a year by Shrikant Shinde, son of Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, and internally codenamed "Operation Tiger." This clandestine operation aimed to rally disgruntled MPs to the Shinde camp, involving discreet planning by a select few within the Shiv Sena, including two state ministers. The pivotal moment occurred on June 16 when Shrikant Shinde arranged private flights for the MPs to Delhi, where they stayed in a Noida hotel before submitting a resolution to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla the following day, securing the allegiance of five MPs before a key Uddhav Thackeray meeting. Among those confirmed to cross over are Hingoli MP Nagesh Bapurao Patil Ashtikar and Omprakash Rajenimbalkar, who cited reasons like a fund crunch for their defection, drawing sharp criticism from Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, who accused the MPs of succumbing to "greed" and betraying the mandate of voters who supported the INDIA bloc.

With the crossover of six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs to the Eknath Shinde faction almost certain, the spotlight is on the man who orchestrated it all. Shrikant Shinde, Kalyan MP and son of Deputy Chief Minister Eknath, spent nearly a year planning ‘Operation Tiger’, which culminated in six MPs switching sides, causing a political upheaval in Maharashtra politics.

Local media reports quoting Shiv Sena sources said the entire operation was internally named Operation Tiger, and the responsibility was given to Shrikant Shinde. The objective of this mission, which was carried out in utmost secrecy for the past several months, was to unite the disgruntled MPs with the Shinde camp, according to News 18.

The operation was revealed to just a few people within Shiv Sena, including two ministers of the Maharashtra government. The plan gained momentum when Hingoli MP Nagesh Bapurao Patil Ashtikar confirmed that he would switch sides. Ashtikar was one of the first MPs to confirm that he had crossed over to the Shiv Sena.

The most crucial phase of the operation was on June 16, when the MPs arrived in Delhi via private planes, booked by Shrikant. They were accommodated in a hotel in Noida, and the very next day, they met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and presented him with a resolution signed by the rebel MPs.

By the time Uddhav Thackeray convened a key meeting with party MPs on Sunday, signatures from five rebel MPs had already been secured in support of the proposed move, according to the report.

Besides Ashtikar, once a close aide of Thackeray, Omprakash Rajenimbalkar, too, confirmed his crossover, citing various reasons, including a fund crunch.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray has lashed out at the dissident MPs, claiming voters had rejected NDA candidates in their constituencies and backed the INDIA bloc, but "greed" led them to "shamelessly" abandon that mandate overnight.

In a post on X, Thackeray further charged that the dissidents' loyalty and reputation were up for sale, while accusing the government of bias and misusing public funds for political purposes. "All of the ones that are jumping over now were elected on the platforms of the MVA and the INDIA, against the NDA. All of them had leaders from Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and NCP (SP) campaigning for them - each one asked for rallies from leaders of all parties and allies," Aaditya Thackeray said.

"The voters voted against the NDA candidates and for INDIA in your constituencies and for all it stands for. Just accept that your greed got you to ditch all of it overnight, shamelessly," he said.

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