Six rebel Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs join Eknath Shinde's faction

The split in Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena (UBT) became official on Monday, with its six rebel Lok Sabha MPs joining the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena. Thy were inducted by Shinde at a press conference in Mumbai, marking the dissidents' first joint public appearance since speculation about their switch began.

Addressing the media, Shinde called "Operation Tiger" a success. "Operation Tiger is now complete and successful," the deputy chief minister declared, while also recalling his June 2022 rebellion that split the then-undivided Shiv Sena. In February 2023, the Election Commission recognised Shinde's faction as the official Shiv Sena, while Uddhav Thackeray's group was designated Shiv Sena (UBT).

"These Lok Sabha members have now joined the original Shiv Sena that follows the teachings of late Balasaheb Thackeray. Four years back I took a strong step and now I have hit a sixer. I did it earlier to save the principles of late Balasaheb Thackeray and to save the Shiv Sena. Now, this move is the second stage of Shiv Sena expansion," he added.

Of the six MPs, Nagesh Patil Ashtikar and Omraje Nimbalkar had already declared on Sunday that they were moving to the Shiv Sena led by Shinde. The others are Sanjay Haribhai Jadhav, Sanjay Dina Patil, Bhausaheb Rajaram Wakchaure, and Sanjay Uttamrao Deshmukh.

The move reduces Sena (UBT)'s strength in the House to just three MPs. The rebels' numerical strength (six) was the exact two-thirds threshold required to bypass the anti-defection law and merge with another party. On the other hand, Shiv Sena now has 13 Lok Sabha members.