Rebel MPs to formalise split from Uddhav Thackeray camp

The Shiv Sena (UBT) split is likely to be formally announced after days of speculation and sharp exchanges. The rebel MPs are expected to hold a joint press conference and release photographs and video footage of their meeting with Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, along with a copy of the letter they submitted to him.

They are also expected to cite the reason behind their departure from the Uddhav Thackeray camp. The six rebel Lok Sabha MPs-Sanjay Dina Patil (Mumbai North East), Sanjay Deshmukh (Yavatmal-Washim), Sanjay Jadhav (Parbhani), Bhausaheb Wakchaure (Shirdi), Nagesh Patil Ashtikar (Hingoli) and Omprakash Raje Nimbalkar (Dharashiv)-form two-thirds of Shiv Sena (UBT)’s nine-member parliamentary strength.

Their move marks the second major fracture in Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray) within four years, following the 2022 rebellion by Eknath Shinde that split the original Shiv Sena and ended the Maha Vikas Aghadi Government in Maharashtra.

Events escalated rapidly on June 16, when the MPs reportedly flew into Delhi late that day and stayed at a hotel in Noida. The following morning, they met Speaker Om Birla and submitted a formal letter seeking recognition as a separate parliamentary group. The letter also requested a change to the Lok Sabha seating to align with the Shinde faction.

The rebels are expected to explain their move by citing what they describe as the UBT leadership’s deviation from the Shiv Sena’s founding ideology. According to sources, they have cited concerns over an alleged plan to merge with the Congress, an MVA ally, as well as grievances including insufficient attention to constituency work, lack of organisational support, and limited access to senior leaders such as Aaditya Thackeray.

The UBT leadership has reacted sharply. Senior leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut has strongly condemned the rebels, accusing them of betrayal and claiming they were poached through inducements. He alleged that the dissidents were flown to Delhi in chartered aircraft and offered large sums of money in what he called “Operation Tiger.”

The party has issued show-cause notices to the six MPs for defying a whip and skipping a crucial parliamentary party meeting on June 18, which only three MPs attended. According to party representatives, they have separately approached Speaker Birla, urging him to reject the rebels’ claims and uphold the provisions of the anti-defection law. If the split is formalised, UBT’s strength in the Lok Sabha will fall from nine to three MPs.

This development is expected to strengthen the Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction, which is aligned with the BJP-led NDA Government in Maharashtra. It represents a clear setback for Uddhav Thackeray, who has sought to position his faction as the State’s main Opposition voice. According to sources, the move could also shift parliamentary arithmetic during the upcoming Monsoon Session and further strain the MVA alliance of the Shiv Sena (UBT), the Congress, and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP. After the press conference, the rebel MPs are likely to meet Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

Speculation is strong that they will eventually merge with his faction, following the precedent set in 2022. The rebels had already stayed away from UBT events, including the party’s 60th foundation day celebrations on June 19. This episode underscores the continuing internal divisions within Shiv Sena, a party founded by Bal Thackeray in 1966 on the planks of Marathi pride and Hindutva.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday asserted that his party remains the only true Shiv Sena, in response to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement that the Eknath Shinde-led faction is the sole Shiv Sena. Thackeray made these remarks while addressing party workers in Bhandup, which falls under the Mumbai North-East Lok Sabha constituency represented by rebel Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Patil.

Thackeray stated that the undivided Shiv Sena, established by his father Bal Thackeray, spent three decades opposing the Congress. He added that despite this, the Congress did not attempt to dismantle or take control of the party.

On Saturday in Kolhapur, Shah said that people used to refer to the Shinde-led faction separately, but “now no faction remains, and there is only one Shiv Sena, which Eknath Shinde heads”.