Shiv Sena (UBT) Holds Parliamentary Board Meeting Amid Reports of Factional Discontent

The Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) has called a meeting of its parliamentary board on Thursday, following reports that a group of its Lok Sabha members may be considering a separate faction. The party, which holds nine seats in the lower house, issued a whip on Wednesday after formally requesting Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to recognise it as the authorised faction in Parliament.

Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut and Lok Sabha MPs Arvind Sawant and Anil Desai met the Speaker on Wednesday with a caveat letter, urging that their party be heard first should any other group approach him. “When we met the Speaker, he told us that nobody else had met him yet, that nothing had reached him yet. We have full faith in the system. We hope no undue relief is given to them (rival faction),” Mr. Desai told The Hindu.

The six MPs reportedly at the centre of the discontent are Sanjay Dina Patil, Sanjay Jadhav, Sanjay Deshmukh, Nagesh Patil Ashtikar, Bhausaheb Wakchaure, and Omraje Nimbalkar. According to sources cited by The Hindu, Mr. Sanjay Dina Patil and Mr. Nimbalkar did not sign the letter to the Speaker. Mr. Dina Patil was said to be in contact with party leaders until Wednesday afternoon, after which he became unreachable.

On Wednesday, party leaders alleged that the MPs were offered financial inducements to switch allegiance. “We don’t know where they are at this point. All these MPs were elected on the face of the undivided Shiv Sena founder, Bal Thackeray, and the hard work of Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray,” Mr. Raut said. The party claimed that each MP was offered Rs. 50 crore, with Rs. 15 crore allegedly given before they boarded chartered flights to Delhi.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh criticised the government, accusing Union Home Minister Amit Shah of attempting to break opposition parties. In a social media post, he said the “wrecking of Indian democracy” was to compensate for the government’s failure to pass Delimitation Bills in the Lok Sabha on April 17, 2026. He suggested that allurements were being used to persuade those elected on an anti-BJP platform to join the ruling party.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders warned that any split could lead to disqualification proceedings under the anti-defection law. “Whatever action the BJP takes in the House, these MPs will be subject to judicial scrutiny once we approach the court. It’s likely that the six have developed cold feet after considering the repercussions,” a party leader said. Another MP added, “We’ll see who all turn up for the meeting.”