Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena is staring at a split with ‘six to seven’ of its nine Lok Sabha Members of Parliament heading to Delhi with Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on 16 June. news agency PTI said citing sources. This crisis in another party in the Opposition comes at a time when Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress grapples with an unprecedented split.
Shiv Sena (UBT) has dismissed the possibility of a split in its Lok Sabha ranks, with the party's Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut claiming that all its MPs remain united.
"Six to seven MPs are likely to switch sides," a leader of the Shinde camp told PTI adding that the move was linked to a possible elevation in the role of Aditya Thackeray, son of Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, who currently heads the party's youth wing.
A report in Indian Express said that four Lok Sabha MPs of the Shiv Sena (UBT) accompanied Shinde.
The leader claimed that the MPs likely to make the switch found the prospect of Aditya's further elevation within Shiv Sena (UBT) unacceptable. Shinde flew to Delhi with the MPs on Tuesday, the report said.
Shiv Sena (UBT) was planning to make an announcement regarding Aditya on June 19, which marks the 60th foundation day of the undivided Shiv Sena. The party split in 2022 following a rebellion led by Shinde that brought down the Maha Vikas Aghadi government.
The perception of impending defections deepened after only four of the party's nine MPs attended a meeting convened by Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday. Raut had claimed that the remaining five MPs joined virtually or over the phone.
On Tuesday, Raut said a "wrong picture was being painted" and asserted that all parliamentarians remained firmly with the party and Uddhav Thackeray.
While MPs Arvind Sawant, Anil Desai, Rajabhau Waze and Sanjay Patil attended the meeting in person, Omprakash Raje Nimbalkar, Bhausaheb Wakchaure, Nagesh Bapurao Patil Ashtikar and Sanjay Deshmukh joined online. Another MP, Sanjay Jadhav, spoke to Thackeray over the phone, Raut had said.
"All Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs are together and will remain together," the Rajya Sabha member told reporters in the Parliament House complex.
Sawant has already written to Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla urging him not to recognise any breakaway group of the party MPs, Indian Expres said in its report.
All Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs are together and will remain together.
Ruling out any threat to Shiv Sena (UBT), Raut also expressed confidence in the party's ability to handle any crisis. "The (undivided) Shiv Sena has a legacy of 60 years and a history of agitating for various causes. We have seen many ups and downs in the past. But ours is a cadre-based party. MLAs and MPs come and go, but the party remains," he added.
