Monsoon Session: Speaker Birla approves Shinde, Sena merger

A day before the customary all-party meeting scheduled pertaining to the Monsoon Session, which begins Monday, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Saturday gave his approval to the merger of six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs with the Shiv Sena-led by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and a separate seating in the House for the 20 rebel TMC lawmakers, who have joined a Tripura-based party, NCPI.

Official sources said that with the merger of the six MPs, the strength of the Shiv Sena has gone up to 13 from seven. The TMC rebel group of 20 MPs will sit separately, away from the parent party, the sources said. However, there was no clarity on the status of the rebel TMC MPs’ demand to be recognised as part of the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI). The all-party meeting has been convened by the Government on Sunday ahead of the Monsoon session of Parliament.

This meeting, which will involve the floor leaders of all major parties, will discuss several pressing issues, including the alleged embezzlement of donations for the Ram temple in Ayodhya and the forcible removal of activist Sonam Wangchuk from Jantar Mantar.

Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju has extended invitations to NCPI Chief Whip Dr. Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar to attend the government’s customary all-party floor leaders’ meeting, hinting at a broader shift in the political landscape before the legislative session commences on July 20.

These developments come against the backdrop of an intensifying numbers game between the ruling BJP-led NDA and the opposition bloc in Parliament. With the official induction of the six Maharashtra MPs into the Shinde faction, the BJP-led alliance has further strengthened its legislative arithmetic.

Additionally, the government has announced five new bills that will be introduced in the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha during the upcoming Monsoon Session. These include Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026: This bill amends the 1971 law to impose penalties for intentional disruptions during the singing of “Vande Mataram.”

While the Speaker has sanctioned the request for separate seating away from the parent TMC block, official sources indicated that a final decision on whether to formally recognize the group under the NCPI banner remains pending as parliamentary and constitutional experts review the legal parameters.