Shiv Sena leader Uday Samant warns of more ‘political blasts’ after Shiv Sena (UBT) rebellion (PTI)
NEW DELHI: Maharashtra minister Uday Samant on Tuesday hinted at fresh defections from Shiv Sena (UBT), saying more political “explosions” were in the offing after six of the party’s Lok Sabha MPs joined the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena. He also signalled that the faction’s “next mission” would focus on the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Shiv Sena (UBT) MLAs. “The political explosion has already happened twice today, but many more explosion are yet to come. These are not the kind of blasts meant to trouble anyone or defame anyone. Those who accept the leadership of Eknath Shinde Saheb come into Shiv Sena under his leadership and accept his leadership,” he said.”Now the (next mission) is the BMC and the MLAs. We will inform you about it step by step, in due course of time,” he added. Speaking on 3 Shiv Sena (UBT) MLAs and one MLC skipping the emergency meeting called by party president Uddhav Thackeray, he says, “First, I will look at the names of who attended and who did not attend. It would be appropriate to comment on that later.”Six Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) Lok Sabha MPs joined the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde in Mumbai on Monday. Sanjay Haribhau Jadhav, Bhausaheb Rajaram Wakchaure, Omprakash Bhupalsingh Nimbalkar, Sanjay Dina Patil, Sanjay Uttamrao Deshmukh, and Nagesh Bapurao Patil Ashtikar joined Shiv Sena.In 2022, Eknath Shinde led a rebellion against then Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, walking away with a large group of MLAs and triggering a split in the Shiv Sena. The ensuing political battle eventually resulted in the Election Commission recognising the Shinde faction as the official Shiv Sena. Before the latest defections, Shiv Sena (UBT) had nine members in the Lok Sabha. Only three MPs attended a parliamentary party meeting convened by the Uddhav Thackeray-led outfit last week, amid reports of dissent. The party subsequently initiated disciplinary action against the six MPs who later crossed over to the Shinde camp.
