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Political Crisis: Lok Sabha MPs Jump Ship to Shinde's Shiv Sena

Monday, June 22, 2026
5 min read
Political Crisis: Lok Sabha MPs Jump Ship to Shinde's Shiv Sena

Uddhav Thackeray is taking a serious hit right now. Six of his party’s nine Lok Sabha MPs are expected to jump ship to Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena this Monday. It’s a big blow, plain and simple.

Media reports are swirling that these MPs will formally merge with the Shinde faction around three in the afternoon. That move if it sticks gives the rebel group the two-thirds majority needed under anti-defection law. They stay safe from immediate disqualification.

The chatter is all about ‘Operation Tiger’. Shinde’s camp is preparing to drop photos and videos later today showing these six MPs meeting the Lok Sabha Speaker. The implied message? That operation was a success.

Amid this whole noise, Thackeray called an MLA and MLC meeting at Shivalay in Nariman Point yesterday afternoon. It was on the first day of monsoon session. He needed to talk things through with his MLAs and discuss where they were headed, because the defections are just getting worse. Concerns about losing ground are clearly mounting.

This whole development comes after Hingoli MP Nagesh Patil Ashtikar and Dharashiv MP Omprakash Raje Nimbalkar publicly announced their switch to Shinde’s side. It wasn't a quiet affair.

The six MPs who skipped the Shiv Sena (UBT) meeting in Delhi on June 17 are Sanjay Dina Patil, Sanjay Deshmukh, Sanjay Jadhav, Bhausaheb Wakchaure, Nagesh Patil-Ashtikar, and Omprakash Raje Nimbalkar. That’s where the math is at. Shiv Sena (UBT) only has nine MPs currently. They need six votes to hit that two-thirds mark.

Ashtikar explained his reasoning in a video message. He said he and some others hadn't decided anything until June 18th. Nothing was moving. But then, certain remarks started hitting them over the past few days. It made staying in Sena (UBT) feel pointless.

“I, and some other MPs, had not taken any decision until June 18,” he said. “We hadn’t gone anywhere. But certain remarks were made against us since Thursday, which made us feel there was no point in staying in Sena (UBT).”

Ashtikar wasn't upset with Thackeray or Sanjay Raut himself. He didn’t change his ideology. Just a shift. He noted he simply “moved from one Shiv Sena to another.” Nimbalkar also confirmed his switch after talking things over with supporters back home.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Fadnavis stepped in. He seemed pretty sure about the outcome. He suggested that ‘Operation Tiger’ had worked. He blamed Thackeray for the whole crisis. Said the developments showed growing confidence in the Shinde-led Sena now.

Shinde, naturally, pushed back a bit too. He hinted at more political moves coming down the line. “Whenever I undertake an operation,” he said, “I complete it fully. We have already shown it.”

When asked about ‘Operation Tiger’ specifically, he brought up something darker. “You will get breaking news soon. The MPs are abused, and then you want them back. There is a chemical locha.” A rather blunt statement there.

Thackeray responded to the rebellion by telling party workers in Bhandup that he wasn't demoralized at all. He called it a “sin of the BJP.” He insisted that the Shiv Sena led by him was the only real Shiv Sena. He threw the blame squarely on the BJP for trying to weaken and seize control of the party structure.

Written by Gree News Team — Senior Editorial Board

Gree News Team covers international news and global affairs at Gree News. Our collective of senior editors is dedicated to providing independent, accurate, and responsible journalism for a global audience.

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