MUMBAI: Amid reports that six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs formed a separate group in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday and submitted a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to that effect, and that the six MPs are set to join the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena on June 19, the party’s foundation day in Mumbai, Shiv Sena minister Uday Samant said that “many formidable ones have been subdued”.In a cryptic WhatsApp post, Samant indicated that “Operation Tiger” had been successful and that top Sena (UBT) leaders had been subdued and would join the Shinde-led Sena.
Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut hit back with a post on X.“Acharya Dada Dharmadhikari had said: ‘The kingdom of money is the kingdom of a prostitute.’ Balasaheb Thackeray had said: ‘Looking at today’s politics, it feels like one should say that prostitutes are better. They are more honest.’ Maharashtra has been turned into a Golpitha (the red-light and working-class district in Mumbai immortalised in Namdeo Dhasal’s poem). History will never forgive the BJP. Jai Maharashtra,” Raut said in his post.Shiv Sena functionary Chandrakant Raghuvanshi claimed that “Operation Tiger” had taken place in Maharashtra and that six MPs had expressed confidence in Eknath Shinde and joined the Shiv Sena.“It is good that they joined us. I welcome them. If two brothers are strong, they are bound to have disagreements and arguments from time to time. The situation in my district, Nandurbar, is somewhat similar. There, our political contest is also with the Bharatiya Janata Party. We share good relations with BJP MLA Rajesh Padvi, and he works closely with our people. Even today, our municipal councillors are aligned with him in the municipal body.“However, overall, there remains a degree of political rivalry and competition. In reality, Shiv Sena’s strength is growing across Maharashtra, and that is why BJP leaders try to keep Shiv Sena under pressure. As a result, occasional tensions and conflicts do arise. That is the truth,” Raghuvanshi said.
