Shiv Sena (UBT) has begun disqualification proceedings against six of its nine Lok Sabha MPs after they skipped a crucial parliamentary meeting.
The move signals a potential collapse of the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction, echoing the instability of the 2022 party split. If a majority of the lawmakers defect, it could severely diminish the party's influence in the lower house of Parliament.
Six lawmakers failed to attend the key meeting in Maharashtra [1], [2]. The party possesses a total of nine Lok Sabha MPs [1], [2]. This absence has triggered immediate internal disciplinary actions as the leadership seeks to purge members suspected of disloyalty.
Reports indicate that the missing MPs were offered inducements to switch their allegiance to the rival faction led by Eknath Shinde [1]. According to these reports, the alleged offers reached as high as Rs 15 crore per lawmaker [1].
Sanjay Raut, a key leader within the UBT faction, has been central to the party's response to the crisis. The party is now moving to formally disqualify the members to prevent a larger-scale defection that would mirror previous political shifts in the state.
The internal turmoil comes as the party attempts to maintain its structural integrity against the competing Shinde-led faction. The loss of six members would represent a two-thirds majority of the party's current Lok Sabha representation [1], [2].
“Six of the nine Shiv Sena UBT Lok Sabha MPs skipped a crucial parliamentary meeting.”
This development suggests a precarious moment for the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT). By initiating disqualification proceedings, the party is attempting to preempt a mass defection that would functionally dismantle its parliamentary presence. The scale of the alleged financial inducements indicates a high-stakes effort by the Eknath Shinde faction to consolidate power and further marginalize the UBT wing of the party.
