Mumbai: In a major setback for Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena (UBT), six of the party's nine Lok Sabha MPs have switched allegiance to Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, strengthening the ruling Shiv Sena and widening the divide within the Thackeray camp.

The MPs formally joined Shinde's faction on Monday, days after skipping a crucial parliamentary party meeting of the Shiv Sena (UBT) in New Delhi. Their move marks the biggest parliamentary setback for Uddhav Thackeray since the 2022 split that divided the original Shiv Sena.

The six MPs who crossed over are Sanjay Deshmukh (Yavatmal), Sanjay Jadhav (Parbhani), Sanjay Dina Patil (Mumbai North East), Nagesh Patil-Ashtikar (Hingoli), Omprakash Rajenimbalkar (Dharashiv) and Bhausaheb Wakchaure (Shirdi).

The development is politically important because all six leaders were elected on Shiv Sena (UBT) tickets in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections after defeating candidates backed by the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance. Their decision to join Shinde has reduced the parliamentary strength of the Uddhav-led faction and further consolidated the Deputy Chief Minister's position within the Sena movement.

Addressing party workers after inducting the MPs, Shinde said the leaders had returned to what he described as the "original Shiv Sena" founded by Balasaheb Thackeray. Referring to the operation that brought the MPs into his camp, he declared that "Operation Tiger" had been completed successfully.

The latest crossover comes nearly four years after Shinde's rebellion against Uddhav Thackeray triggered a split in the undivided Shiv Sena and led to the fall of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra. Shinde described the induction of the six MPs as the next phase of the party's expansion and an effort to strengthen the organisation ahead of future elections.

With PTI inputs