Operation Tiger Delivers Major Blow to Uddhav Camp as 6 Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs Join Eknath Shinde Faction
In a significant political development that could reshape Maharashtra’s political landscape, six Lok Sabha MPs from Shiv Sena (UBT) formally joined the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena on Monday, strengthening the ruling faction’s position in Parliament and escalating the battle over the party’s legacy. The leaders who switched sides are Omprakash Nimbalkar, Nagesh Patil Ashtikar, Sanjay Deshmukh, Sanjay Jadhav, Sanjay Dina Patil and Bhausaheb Wakchaure. They were inducted into the party in the presence of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, MP Shrikant Shinde, Minister Pratap Sarnaik and other senior Shiv Sena leaders.
The induction significantly boosts the parliamentary strength of the Shinde-led faction. Speaking after the joining ceremony, Minister Pratap Sarnaik said the party’s Lok Sabha tally would rise from seven to thirteen MPs. “This will increase the number of our MPs from 7 to 13. This has increased the strength of Shiv Sena,” he said. According to party leaders, the six MPs have also submitted a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla informing him of their decision.
Calling the move another milestone in the party’s political expansion, Sarnaik said, “Operation Tiger continues 365 days a year. The six MPs who follow the ideology of Balasaheb Thackeray are joining Shiv Sena. They have submitted a letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker. We welcome them. We thank Sanjay Raut because, due to him, first the MLAs joined our party, and now six MPs are joining our party.”
The development triggered an immediate political response from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), with party leader Aaditya Thackeray accusing the defecting MPs of abandoning the mandate given by voters. Addressing the media, he alleged, “Today they are breaking our MPs and MLAs because they want to change Babasaheb Ambedkar's Constitution. Voters stopped them in 2024, and they got only 240 MPs. Now they are once again trying to achieve that by breaking political parties. Their main aim is to change the Constitution.”
Aaditya Thackeray further criticised the rebel lawmakers, calling them “darrpok aur bikau” and alleging that they had betrayed the people who elected them. “They were elected in the name of Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray and MVA against the BJP. Now, the BJP wants to include them in their ‘daldal’ so that they can change the Constitution of the country by achieving a two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha,” he said.
Continuing his attack, the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader claimed that similar political tactics had been used against other opposition parties. “The way our party was split, the same way TMC and AAP were also split. If there is law and a Constitution in this country, then we can expect justice,” he added.
The latest defections mark one of the biggest setbacks for the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction since the split in Shiv Sena and are expected to have a major impact on Maharashtra politics. While the Shinde camp has projected the move as a reaffirmation of Balasaheb Thackeray’s ideology, the UBT leadership has termed it a betrayal of the public mandate, setting the stage for an intensified political confrontation in the state.
