After MPs' exit, four Uddhav Sena legislators skip party's strategy meet
As Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena (UBT) grapples with the political fallout of the defection of its six Lok Sabha MPs, four of its state legislators
As Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena (UBT) grapples with the political fallout of the defection of its six Lok Sabha MPs, four of its state legislators skipped a legislative party meeting convened by the party chief on Monday, the opening day of the Maharashtra Legislature's monsoon session. The absence of the four legislators -- three MLAs and one MLC --, amid heightened political uncertainty, drew attention as the meeting was convened to finalise the party's strategy for the Assembly session and project unity following the parliamentary defections.
Read Full Story The legislators who did not attend the meeting were MLAs Sanjay Derkar, Rahul Patil and Sanjay Potnis, along with MLC Sunil Shinde. However, party sources claimed that all four had informed the leadership in advance that they would not be able to attend. They cited reasons including preparations for the upcoming Legislative Council elections, ill health and personal commitments. The development came on the same day that six of the party's nine Lok Sabha MPs formally defected to the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, bringing an end to days of political uncertainty.
Despite the MLAs' absence from the meeting, sources said there was no indication of another round of defections from the party. The meeting was attended by the remaining 22 legislators and concluded with a group photograph alongside Thackeray, in what was seen as a symbolic show of unity. During the meeting, Thackeray asked the party's MLAs and MLCs to aggressively raise issues concerning farmers, unemployment, water scarcity and other public concerns during the legislature session. He also urged legislators to present a united front at a time when the party is dealing with the fallout of losing six MPs to the rival Sena faction.
According to sources, Thackeray also directed legislators to intensify organisational outreach by holding meetings with party workers in the parliamentary constituencies represented by the rebel MPs, signalling the party's efforts to retain its support base on the ground. Ends
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