Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Monday accused the BJP of attempting to engineer defections within his party to secure the numbers required in Parliament to amend the Constitution, amid reports that six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs are set to join the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.
Addressing a press conference, Thackeray alleged that the BJP was trying to weaken opposition parties after falling short of a majority in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
“Today they are breaking our MPs and MLAs as they are willing to change the constitution of Babasaheb Ambedkar. Voters prevented them in 2024, and they got only 240 MPs, but now they are trying that again by breaking parties; their main aim is to change the constitution,” he said.
His remarks come amid growing speculation over a fresh split in Shiv Sena (UBT), with six of the party’s nine Lok Sabha MPs reportedly preparing to switch allegiance to the Shinde faction in what has been dubbed “Operation Tiger”.
Thackeray criticised the rebel MPs, arguing that they owed their electoral victories to the collective efforts of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance and were now betraying the mandate given by voters.
“All these people were elected on Shiv Sena (UBT) with the help of MVA allies, and now they are switching to the other side against the people's mandate,” he said.
He further contended that voters in the concerned constituencies had rejected the NDA’s ideology and questioned the decision of the MPs to align with the ruling alliance.
Launching a broader attack on the BJP, Thackeray said, “BJP can riot in the country, put things on rampage, can campaign, but one thing is sure that BJP doesn't know how to rule. We are seeing this in BMC in Mumbai and PMC in Pune.”
He also alleged misuse of public resources to facilitate political defections.
“These people don't have money for salaries of employees and welfare schemes, but they have money to buy MPs,” he claimed.
Asserting that the original Shiv Sena remains with the Uddhav Thackeray faction, he said, “I think Shiv Sena is just one that is ours, Shiv Sena (UBT), and the other one is a space of BJP and not Shiv Sena Shinde, etc.”
The political crisis deepened after a parliamentary party meeting held in New Delhi on Thursday was attended by only three of Shiv Sena (UBT)’s nine Lok Sabha MPs. Arvind Sawant, Anil Desai and Rajabhau Waje attended the meeting, while six MPs stayed away, fuelling speculation about an imminent split.
The MPs whose absence triggered the latest round of rumours are Nagesh Aashtikar, Sanjay Deshmukh, Sanjay Jadhav, Sanjay Dina Patil, Omprakash Rajenimbalkar and Bhausaheb Wakchaure, Patil and Rajenimbalkar have formally anounced their split.
Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut had earlier said the process of seeking the disqualification of the absent MPs had already begun.
The controversy intensified after Shiv Sena MLC Chandrakant Raghuvanshi claimed that six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs had expressed confidence in Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and joined his faction.
With reports of defections mounting, the latest developments have raised the prospect of another major split in the party founded by Bal Thackeray, nearly four years after the rebellion led by Shinde reshaped Maharashtra politics.
