Mumbai/New Delhi: Fresh political tensions emerged on Saturday between the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Shiv Sena (UBT) as speculation about an alleged “Operation Tiger” intensified, with deputy chief minister Shinde hinting bigger moves ahead and UBT veteran Sanjay Raut firing back with a sharp, cryptic social media post.
The spat intensified after six MPs from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) skipped a party meeting in New Delhi, fuelling rumours of another rupture in the Thackeray faction. The absentees — Sanjay Jadhav, Nagesh Aashtikar, Sanjay Deshmukh, Omprakash Rajenimbalkar, Sanjay Dina Patil and Bhausaheb Wakchaure — stayed away despite a whip being issued.
Speaking at the party’s 60th foundation day in Mumbai on Friday evening, Shinde suggested recent events were merely an opening act. “Everyone is looking toward us, wondering what Eknath Shinde will say and who will come onto the stage. This is just the trailer; the full picture is yet to come,” he told supporters.
Without directly naming Uddhav Thackeray, Shinde charged that those who drifted from Balasaheb Thackeray’s ideals have paid a political price. “The Shiv Sena is an ideology; it is not just a political party, it is like a saffron cloud. Those who forgot the saffron ideology suffered losses. You forgot Balasaheb’s ideology for the sake of a chair,” he said.
Shinde Invokes Balasaheb
Shinde invoked the party’s founding aims, saying the Shiv Sena was established to defend Marathi pride and to work for farmers, women and the Varkari community. He lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and suggested Balasaheb Thackeray would have approved recent BJP decisions, including the abrogation of Article 370. The Shiv Sena was founded by Balasaheb on June 19, 1966; the party fractured dramatically in 2022 when Shinde led a revolt that ultimately won him recognition as the official Shiv Sena.
Rumours of a split grew louder after Shiv Sena MLC Chandrakant Raghuvanshi claimed the six UBT MPs had signalled support for Shinde and joined his camp, raising alarm in Uddhav Thackeray’s circle about a possible second split.
Sanjay Raut’s Cryptic Loyalty Message
Sanjay Raut, one of the four MPs who did attend the Delhi meeting alongside Anil Desai, Arvind Sawant and Rajabhau Waje, responded to the developments on social media with an infographic reading: “Kuch log Kuttey toh hoty hain Lekin wafa’daar Nahi hoty” (Some are dogs, but they are not loyal). He captioned the post: “Jai Maharashtra!”
Raut has moved against the absentees, saying show-cause notices have been issued and that efforts will be made to seek their disqualification. “The process for taking action has started,” he said. “We will make every effort to get them disqualified. If the Speaker of the Lok Sabha works according to the rules, the law, and the Supreme Court’s directives, these people will be disqualified.”
Uddhav Thackeray, addressing party workers on Friday, dismissed merger rumours with the Congress and denied the allegations against him, even as he targeted the BJP and Shinde. “I will step down from my position if the allegations levelled against me are proven true,” Thackeray said, adding he would never allow the Shiv Sena to be handed over to “any thief”.
