Shiv Sena (UBT) workers in Dharashiv warned of aggressive protests, including smearing cow dung on the faces of rebel leaders, amid reports of local MP Omprakash Raje Nimbalkar planning to defect.
Six of the nine Shiv Sena (UBT) Lok Sabha MPs skipped a crucial parliamentary party meeting in New Delhi, signalling an imminent crossover to the Eknath Shinde-led faction.
The dissident MPs submitted a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla seeking a formal merger with the ruling Shiv Sena to bypass the Tenth Schedule anti-defection law.
Six of the nine Shiv Sena (UBT) Lok Sabha Members of Parliament skipped a parliamentary party meeting on Thursday, signalling an imminent formal crossover to the Eknath Shinde-led faction.
The dissident MPs signed a letter seeking a merger with the ruling Shiv Sena and submitted it to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, PTI reported. A group of rebel leaders also met Speaker Birla informally on Wednesday, claiming the support of six of the party's nine MPs in the Lower House, according to PTI. The speaker's office is currently verifying the signatures. Officials require the physical appearance of some MPs in the coming days to complete the process.
Arvind Sawant, Anil Desai, and Rajabhau Waje attended the Thursday meeting alongside the lone Rajya Sabha MP, Sanjay Raut. The six absent MPs are Nagesh Patil-Ashtikar, Sanjay Deshmukh, Sanjay Jadhav, Sanjay Dina Patil, Omprakash Raje Nimbalkar and Bhausaheb Wakchaure, according to PTI.
Legal Battle Over Whip
Shiv Sena (UBT) issued a three-line whip on Wednesday directing all MPs to attend the Thursday 11 a.m. meeting to set up potential disqualification proceedings. Under the Tenth Schedule anti-defection law, at least two-thirds of the party's MPs, or six out of nine, must switch sides together to escape disqualification.
"Action will be taken against those who violate the whip after consulting the party chief (Uddhav Thackeray)," Sawant told reporters, according to PTI.
Shinde camp sources disputed the whip's validity. "The courts have repeatedly held that while a political party can issue internal directions (including for meetings) as a matter of organisational discipline, non-compliance with such a whip has no Tenth Schedule consequence unless it concerns voting in the House," a Shinde camp functionary told PTI. Eknath Shinde, who orchestrated the 2022 split in the undivided Shiv Sena, visited Delhi late Tuesday and returned to Mumbai on Wednesday.
Anticipating the rebellion, Sawant, Desai and Raut met Birla on Wednesday to urge him to block any unlawful defection.
"Under the law, one cannot simply merge with a party even if they have the support of two-thirds of the MPs. Only the original party can merge if a group has the required two-thirds strength," Desai told PTI.
Fury in Dharashiv Constituency
The crisis triggered immediate anger among Shiv Sena (UBT) party workers in Dharashiv. Local loyalists warned that rebels would not be allowed to move freely and threatened to smear their faces with cow dung.
Dharashiv deputy chief Bandu Adarkar and functionary Suresh Gawai told a regional news channel that a rebellion by Nimbalkar would be deeply painful, PTI reported.
"If he decides to leave the party, then we will not let him win any of the elections, including assembly and Parliament. Our party has made him big and has given him an identity across the state," a Sena (UBT) worker told PTI.
"Even one party worker who leaves Shiv Sena (UBT) will not be allowed to roam freely in Dharashiv city. I will smear their faces with cow dung. This is my firm stand," another Dharashiv party worker told PTI.
