Mumbai, June 18 (IANS) In a major political development that mirrors the high-stakes drama of 2022, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena-UBT is facing a massive vertical split in its parliamentary ranks.

Six out of the party’s nine Lok Sabha MPs skipped a crucial parliamentary party meeting in New Delhi, defying a strict party whip. As “Operation Tiger”, launched by the Shinde camp, gathers momentum, Shiv Sena-UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray has called an urgent damage-control meeting on Friday.

The possible loss of a Member of Parliament from Mumbai — where the Thackeray faction boasts a robust and fiercely loyal grassroots cadre — has deeply unsettled the party leadership.

Angry party workers have raised concerns about the vacuum this could create at the local level. To stem the tide, Uddhav Thackeray has convened an urgent meeting at his residence, Matoshree, on Friday at 12 p.m.

The high-level meeting will specifically bring together local office-bearers, former corporators and grassroots leaders from the Mumbai North-East constituency. Thackeray aims to interact directly with local functionaries to gauge their alignment and prevent the Shinde camp and the BJP from poaching lower-tier leaders and former municipal corporators.

Thackeray’s move comes after “Operation Tiger” reportedly engineered another major defection, potentially dealing a severe blow to his camp ahead of upcoming political battles.

The six rebel MPs — Sanjay Dina Patil (Mumbai North-East), Omraje Nimbalkar (Dharashiv), Sanjay Jadhav (Parbhani), Sanjay Deshmukh (Yavatmal-Washim), Nagesh Patil Ashtikar (Hingoli), and Bhausaheb Wakchaure (Shirdi) — have reportedly signed a letter seeking to form a separate bloc in the Lok Sabha and are widely expected to officially join the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.

The political tremor became undeniable when Chief Whip Anil Desai called an emergency meeting of the Lok Sabha parliamentary party in New Delhi.

Only three Lok Sabha MPs — Arvind Sawant, Anil Desai and Rajabhau Waze — along with Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut, attended.

The Shiv Sena-UBT leadership has taken a tough stance, issuing formal show-cause notices to the six absent lawmakers. They have been given a seven-day window to respond, failing which the party will initiate legal proceedings under the anti-defection law to seek their disqualification.

“We will fight this battle on the streets, and we will fight it in the courts,” Sanjay Raut said, alleging that massive financial inducements were used to lure the MPs away.

The most significant blow to Uddhav Thackeray comes from the heart of his home turf — Mumbai. Mumbai North-East MP Sanjay Dina Patil, who had defeated the BJP candidate in the Lok Sabha elections, has crossed over to the Shinde faction.

Patil, who originally hails from a Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) background before moving to the undivided Shiv Sena in 2019, represents a critical loss for the Thackeray camp. Despite his public denials just days earlier, his absence from the Delhi meeting has intensified speculation over his defection.

Incidentally, his daughter was recently elected on a Shiv Sena (UBT) ticket in the recently held elections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.

The current crisis marks the second major rebellion against Uddhav Thackeray in four years. In June 2022, Eknath Shinde led a massive revolt involving 40 Shiv Sena MLAs, resulting in the collapse of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition government.

Shinde subsequently aligned with the BJP to become the Chief Minister, and the Election Commission eventually recognised his faction as the “real” Shiv Sena, awarding it the iconic ‘Bow and Arrow’ symbol.

Despite being stripped of his party name and symbol, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT) delivered a strong performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, winning nine seats across Maharashtra through emotional appeal and strong grassroots networks.

Under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, a breakaway faction requires the support of at least two-thirds of its elected members to avoid immediate disqualification. Since the Thackeray faction has nine Lok Sabha members, exactly six MPs are required to form a valid breakaway group.

By coordinating the exit of all six MPs, the rebel group secures protection under parliamentary rules, shifting the balance of power overwhelmingly towards Eknath Shinde’s NDA-aligned faction.

–IANS

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