In a major blow to the Uddhav Thackeray faction, all six rebel Shiv Sena (UBT) Lok Sabha MPs are reportedly set to jump ship and join the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena at 3 pm on Monday.
The Sena (UBT) has nine Lok Sabha MPs, and the breakaway faction requires at least six—two-thirds of the total strength—to escape disqualification under the anti-defection law.
Two of the dissident MPs, Nagesh Patil Ashtikar and Omprakash Raje Nimbalkar, have already confirmed their decision to join the Shinde faction.
Ashtikar and Nimbalkar, along with four other MPs—Sanjay Dina Patil, Sanjay Deshmukh, Sanjay Jadhav, Bhausaheb Wakchaure—had skipped a Sena (UBT) parliamentary party meeting on Thursday.
Ashtikar, in a video posted on social media, said that they had not made any decision until June 18. "However, certain remarks were made against us since Thursday, which made us believe that there is no point in staying here (Shiv Sena-UBT)," he said.
Ashtikar added that he had not compromised on his ideology and had just gone from one Shiv Sena to another.
Nimbalkar also confirmed that he had decided to join the Shinde-led Shiv Sena after discussions with his supporters in the constituency.
Meanwhile, the Uddhav Thackeray faction has called a meeting of all its MLAs and MLCs at 2:30 pm on Monday at Shivalay, in Nariman Point. The meeting—occurring on day one of the Maharashtra Legislature's monsoon session—comes as the Sena (UBT) fights to prevent further defections and keep its legislative flock intact.
Amid the political turmoil, Thackeray asserted that there could be only one Shiv Sena as the party's legacy was built around protecting the Marathi people's rights.
"There could be only one Shiv Sena. In 2024, we fought against the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led alliance and still won with the people's support. Now by detecting power and money, these MPs betrayed the party and people," he said.
The development comes amid the buzz of "Operation Tiger", an alleged move being executed by Maharashtra Deputy CM Eknath Shinde to defect MPs from Thackeray's Shiv Sena (UBT) faction to his own camp.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis acknowledged the success of "Operation Tiger" and blamed Thackeray for the crisis. He said the developments reflected growing confidence in the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.
