Six members of parliament from the Shiv Sena-UBT faction have reportedly joined Eknath Shinde's rival faction on Thursday [1].

This shift threatens the legislative strength of Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray's party and could destabilize the current political balance in Maharashtra. The defection represents a significant loss of personnel for the UBT faction, which holds a total of nine MPs in the Lok Sabha [2].

In response to the crisis, Thackeray called an urgent parliamentary party meeting on June 18, 2026 [3] at his Matoshree residence in Mumbai. The party leadership has issued a three-line whip to all its MPs to ensure attendance, and loyalty [4]. This move is intended to prevent further defections and preserve the unity of the faction amid the ongoing split with the Shinde-led group [5].

The intra-party turmoil has been dubbed "Operation Tiger" [6]. While the party has moved to consolidate its ranks, reports on the status of the lawmakers vary. Some sources said that the six MPs have already joined Shinde's Sena [1], while others indicate the UBT leadership intends to send show-cause notices to the six MPs who skipped the parliamentary meeting [7].

Shiv Sena MLC Chandrakant Raghuvanshi said that six UBT MPs have joined Shinde's Sena [1]. The situation has centered on activities at both the Parliament House in New Delhi and the Matoshree residence in Mumbai [8].

Thackeray's attempt to enforce discipline via the three-line whip is a formal mechanism to prevent members from voting against the party, or absenting themselves from crucial sessions [4]. The outcome of the meeting at Matoshree will likely determine whether the UBT faction can stop the momentum of the rebellion or if further losses are inevitable.

“Six members of parliament from the Shiv Sena-UBT faction have reportedly joined Eknath Shinde's rival faction”

The potential loss of six out of nine MPs would effectively strip the Shiv Sena-UBT of its parliamentary influence in the Lok Sabha. By utilizing a three-line whip, Thackeray is attempting to use formal party discipline to block a mass exodus, but the conflicting reports on whether the MPs have already defected suggest a breakdown in party communication and control.