Two days before the Monsoon Session of Parliament started, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on June 18 approved the merger of six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs into the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena. The decision alters the balance of numbers in the lower house. It raises the Shiv Sena tally from seven to 13 MPs and lowers the Uddhav Thackeray faction to three. The change strengthens Shinde’s standing inside the BJP-led NDA after the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly polls confirmed the BJP as the leading partner in the state’s ruling alliance. The six MPs who switched sides on June 22 were Sanjay Jadhav, Sanjay Patil, Sanjay Deshmukh, Omraje Nimbalkar, Nagesh Patil Ashtikar and Bhausaheb Wakchaure. With the additions, the Shiv Sena becomes the NDA’s third-largest group in the Lok Sabha, behind the BJP’s 240 and the Telugu Desam Party’s 16. The new total also makes the Shiv Sena the joint largest party in Maharashtra’s Lok Sabha contingent alongside Congress, while the BJP holds nine seats. For the Shinde group the recognition completes the effort called Operation Tiger and partly restores influence lost after the assembly elections, when the BJP’s strong performance reduced Shinde from chief minister to deputy chief minister. Party sources say the move improves bargaining power inside the NDA. They also note concern over 20 rebel TMC MPs who have joined the Nationalist Citizens Party of India and declared support for the government. The larger Shiv Sena presence is expected to support demands for extra cabinet posts and committee roles when the Union ministry is expanded. The BJP views the added numbers as helpful for upcoming legislation yet remains cautious about any single ally gaining too much weight. Recent contacts between NCP (SP) leaders and Maharashtra ministers have drawn attention, though both sides describe the talks as routine constituency matters. Relations between the BJP and Shiv Sena remain strained over power sharing despite public statements of unity.
