Maharashtra's opposition leaders acknowledged a sense of discomfort within the ruling party, fueling speculation about the state's political stability.
Key Points
- Maharashtra opposition leaders dismiss rumours of a potential split within the Shiv Sena-UBT and joining the Eknath Shinde-led party.
- Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar acknowledges a 'sense of discomfort' within the Shiv Sena despite being in power.
- NCP-SP leader Anil Deshmukh questions the existence of 'Operation Tiger', aimed at inducing defections, calling it speculative.
- Opposition leaders claim Shiv Sena-UBT MPs are united and firmly support Uddhav Thackeray, making a major political upheaval unlikely.
- Eknath Shinde has dismissed the reports as baseless and said the aim of such rumours was to create sensation.
Senior Opposition leaders in Maharashtra on Friday claimed there was a "sense of discomfort" within the Shiv Sena despite being in power, but dismissed as speculative the reports that a section of opposition Shiv Sena-UBT will split and join the Eknath Shinde-led party.
They denied the possibility of any major political upheaval in the state in the near future.
Over the past few days, there has been a buzz that the Shiv Sena has secretly launched 'Operation Tiger' in a bid to induce defections among leaders of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Sena-UBT.
However, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who heads the ruling Sena, on Friday dubbed the reports as "baseless" and said the aim of such "rumours" was to "create sensation".
Opposition Leaders' Statements
Talking to reporters in Nagpur, senior Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar said, "Despite being in power, there appears to be a sense of discomfort in the Shiv Sena, including among its top leaders like Eknath Shinde and his ministers."
When asked about reports that Shinde held a secret meeting with Sena-UBT MPs in Thane and that there has been a buzz that a section of the Uddhav Thackeray-led party will join the ruling Sena, he said, "What is the harm in meeting ruling alliance ministers for development works of their constituencies? I don't see any possibility of political realignment."
Not all the claims doing rounds necessarily reflect the ground reality, the Congress Legislature Party leader said.
NCP-SP leader and former home minister Anil Deshmukh questioned the existence of the "Operation Tiger", terming it as speculative.
He claimed that Members of Parliament belonging to Uddhav Thackeray's party were united and firmly backed their leader.
Given this unity, the likelihood of any major political upheaval or split in the near future appears remote, Deshmukh said.
The Sena-UBT has 10 MPs. This includes nine members in the Lok Sabha and one in the Rajya Sabha.
The 2022 Shiv Sena Split
In 2022, Shinde led a rebellion within the Bal Thackeray-founded Shiv Sena, breaking away from Uddhav Thackeray's leadership with a group of MLAs.
He subsequently got the party's name and its bow-and-arrow symbol.
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