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Uddhav Thackeray to visit 6 rebel MPs’ constituencies: Outreach aims to connect with shakhas, review ground situation & ensure party remains intact despite high-profile defections
Uddhav and Aaditya Thackeray. (file)
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray is launching a grassroots tour across the constituencies of six rebel Lok Sabha MPs who skipped a crucial parliamentary party meeting to align with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s faction.
Thackeray is initiating this outreach campaign on June 21, 2026, starting with the Mumbai North East constituency. This political manoeuvre aims to connect directly with the party’s shakhas (local branches), review the ground situation, and ensure the party framework remains intact despite the high-profile defections.
THE SIX REBEL MPs
The six Lok Sabha MPs from the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) who rebelled and submitted a letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker requesting to merge with the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena are:
1. Sanjay Jadhav (Parbhani)
2. Sanjay Deshmukh (Yavatmal-Washim)
3. Nagesh Patil Ashtikar (Hingoli)
4. Bhausaheb Wakchaure (Shirdi)
5. Sanjay Dina Patil (Mumbai North East)
6. Omraje Nimbalkar (Dharashiv)
TOUR SCHEDULE AND CONSTITUENCIES
Thackeray will travel across Maharashtra to directly address party workers and office-bearers in the following locations:
June 21: Mumbai North East (Bhandup and Kanjurmarg)
June 27: Yavatmal, Washim and Hingoli
June 28: Parbhani city, Dharashiv city
June 29: Shirdi
THE POLITICAL FRICTION
Six out of nine Shiv Sena (UBT) Lok Sabha MPs skipped Thackeray’s New Delhi meeting, effectively reducing his camp’s active parliamentary count to three. The rebel faction has written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla seeking separate seating adjacent to the ruling Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.
The party’s Chief Whip, Anil Desai, issued a strict 24-hour show-cause notice to the absent MPs, threatening disqualification under the Anti-Defection Law.
Thackeray publicly termed the defectors “traitors” and even offered to step down as party chief if grassroots workers lost faith in his leadership. He urged local functionaries to focus on the fight ahead rather than fretting over those who betrayed the political front.
The reason given by the rebels is unapproachability of the Thackerays to resolve their issues or visit their constituencies.
DECODING UDDHAV THACKERAY’S 3-PRONGED STRATEGY
Recognising that the parliamentary split is legally protected by the two-thirds threshold, Thackeray has shifted his strategy from behind-the-scenes negotiation to an all-out public and emotional outreach campaign to protect his voter base.
1. The Direct Outreach to Rebels: Desperate firefighting efforts are underway, including emissaries like MLA Kailas Patil meeting rebel MP Omraje Nimbalkar in Pune to convey Thackeray’s personal message. Aaditya Thackeray even extended a conditional olive branch stating those who return are welcome. The outreach is too late. The six rebel MPs have already submitted their letters to the Lok Sabha Speaker, skipped the crucial 60th foundation day event, and are moving forward with a joint press conference to publicise their crossover.
2. The Emotional Outreach to Grassroots “Shiv Sainiks”: Thackeray used the party’s 60th foundation day to bypass the lawmakers and appeal directly to the voters and party workers. In an emotional address, Thackeray publicly apologised to the voters of the rebel constituencies for backing candidate choices who ultimately betrayed their trust.
He stated he would step down from the party presidency without hesitation the moment the grassroots workers (Shiv Sainiks) lost faith in him—a high-stakes tactical move designed to generate intense sympathy and counter the rebels’ narrative. Rebels claimed they fled because they feared a complete merger of the Sena (UBT) into the Congress. Thackeray forcefully blunted this by stating, “If we didn’t merge with the BJP after 30 years of alliance, how can we merge with Congress?”
3. The Ground Outreach (The Litmus Test): Thackeray has launched an immediate physical tour of the exact constituencies represented by the defectors, starting on Sunday in Mumbai North East (represented by rebel MP Sanjay Dina Patil) to review the ground realities and secure the loyalty of local workers. By framing the crisis as an attack on the foundational identity of Balasaheb Thackeray’s legacy, his narrative positions the rebel MPs as “ungrateful opportunists” who won elections purely on the Thackeray family name.
About the Author
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