MUMBAI: Six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs reportedly formed a separate group in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday and submitted a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.The six MPs are expected to join the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena on June 19, the party’s foundation day. Sena functionaries said the process of forming the separate group was completed smoothly.The Shiv Sena (UBT) has nine MPs in the Lok Sabha. Barring Arvind Sawant, Anil Desai and Rajabhau Waze, all the remaining MPs are understood to have joined the new group. Sena (UBT) MPs Sanjay Raut, Sawant and Desai also met Birla and urged him not to recognise any separate group formed by defecting Sena (UBT) MPs.However, Sena functionaries claimed that Birla had recognised the group of six MPs as a separate bloc.Amid reports of “Operation Tiger” being underway to engineer a split in the Sena (UBT), the party has issued a whip directing all its Lok Sabha MPs to attend a meeting of the parliamentary party in Delhi on Thursday at 11 am. The whip was issued by MP Anil Desai, the party’s chief whip in the Lok Sabha.Sena (UBT) functionaries said party chief Uddhav Thackeray may also travel to Delhi in an attempt to pacify the MPs and could attend the parliamentary party meeting on Thursday.
Should Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla recognize the new group formed by the defecting MPs?
Also read: Sanjay Raut makes explosive Shiv Sena (UBT) claim“All Lok Sabha Members of Shiv Sena (UBT) are hereby informed that an important meeting of the Parliamentary Party regarding various issues concerning the party will be held on Thursday, June 18, 2026, at 11 am at Parliamentary Party Office 128-A, Parliament House, New Delhi. All Lok Sabha members of Shiv Sena (UBT) must remain present for the meeting,” the whip stated.Late on Tuesday, Sena (UBT) parliamentary party leader Arvind Sawant wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, requesting him not to entertain any claim seeking recognition of a separate group or a merger with another political party by the defecting MPs.Sawant said the party’s claim that Shiv Sena (UBT) represents the “real Shiv Sena” remains sub judice before the Supreme Court and that his letter was being written without prejudice to that claim.He was responding to reports that certain MPs elected on the Sena (UBT)’s symbol had either approached, or were contemplating approaching, the Speaker seeking recognition as a separate group or merger with another political party within the Lok Sabha.
