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Shiv Sena(UBT) petitions Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla amid ‘rumours’ of split

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Mumbai, June 17: In a pre-emptive move against a brewing political rebellion, the Shiv Sena(UBT) leader in the Lok Sabha, Arvind Sawant, in a petition before the Speaker, Om Birla, has sought his intervention to block any attempts by disgruntled lawmakers to orchestrate a fresh split or merger in the Lower House of Parliament.

The extensive four-page letter, dated June 16, was written amid swirling media reports about “Operation Tiger”. The media report suggested that up to seven of the party’s nine Lok Sabha MPs are contemplating breaking away to align with the rival Eknath Shinde-led faction or other political forces.

Sawant has explicitly flagged these backroom manoeuvres. “There are reports appearing in the media that certain Members of Parliament elected on the symbol of the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) have either approached, or are contemplating approaching, your office seeking recognition as a separate group or a merger with another political party within the Lok Sabha,” he said.

Sawant emphasised that the parliamentary wing owes its existence entirely to the parent organisational party and that the constitutional framework does not permit “multiple competing formations” to represent the same political party inside the House.

A core segment of Sawant’s petition relied heavily on constitutional law and judicial precedent to dismantle the strategy often used by defecting factions.

Sawant said there is no Constitutional protection for a ‘Split’, and that following the deletion of Paragraph 3 of the Tenth Schedule via the Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment) Act, 2003, the law no longer recognises splinter groups within a legislature as a defence against disqualification.

Citing the Landmark Supreme Court judgment in ‘Subhash Desai vs. Principal Secretary, Governor of Maharashtra & Ors.’ (2023), he has argued that the power to appoint a whip, leader, or issue binding directives flows exclusively from the parent political party, not the legislative group.

Addressing rumours that numerical strength (the two-thirds mark) is enough to break away, Sawant clarified that Paragraph 4 of the Tenth Schedule requires two distinct conditions to be satisfied conjunctively: first, a merger of the original political party itself, and second, the support of at least two-thirds of the legislative members. “Without an actual merger of the organisational Shiv Sena(UBT), any standalone action by the MPs would constitute a voluntary relinquishment of membership, triggering immediate disqualification under Paragraph 2 of the Anti-Defection Law,” he remarked.

Sawant has requested the Lok Sabha Speaker to take the formal representation strictly on record, refuse any separate recognition, status, privilege, or facility to any purported breakaway faction and ensure no decision is taken on any rogue request without first granting the principal Shiv Sena(UBT) leadership a fair opportunity to present its case.

The submission of this letter comes at a highly volatile moment. Rumours have intensified as multiple UBT MPs reportedly arrived in New Delhi simultaneously with Deputy Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde.

Compounding the anxiety within the Uddhav camp, senior MP Sanjay Raut recently launched a scathing attack on the ruling dispensation, alleging that opposition lawmakers were being offered astronomical sums of up to Rs 15 crore each to defect.

While the Shinde faction has publicly dismissed accusations of engineering defections, the appearance of Sawant’s comprehensive legal letter signals that the Thackeray loyalists are bracing for a bruising constitutional battle to protect their presence in Parliament.

Maharashtra

Clash at Bhiwandi Dindigad Hill Leaves Six Injured; Tension Reportedly Erupts Again at Hospital

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Bhiwandi, Maharashtra: A dispute between two groups of youths at Dindigad Hill near Bhiwandi escalated into a physical confrontation on Sunday afternoon, leaving six people injured, according to preliminary information.

The incident reportedly began after a disagreement at the hill area. The dispute is understood to have been linked to objections over non-vegetarian food being brought to the location. What started as a verbal argument soon turned violent, with members of the two groups allegedly assaulting each other.

The injured were taken to Bhiwandi Sub-District Hospital for medical treatment. However, tension reportedly flared again when members of the two groups came face-to-face at the hospital. Police personnel were deployed at the hospital to prevent the situation from escalating further.

Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the confrontation and are examining the claims made by those involved. Further legal action is expected after statements are recorded and the facts of the incident are established.

The incident has raised concerns over the need for restraint and peaceful resolution of disputes, particularly in public places where clashes can quickly create tension in the surrounding area.

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Maharashtra

MIDC Police Station operation: Heroin worth Rs 35 million seized, suspect arrested

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MIDC Police Station Anti-Narcotics Squad PI Kholam and his team were patrolling the night of August 22 to take action against people using, buying and selling drugs within their limits.

On the 23rd, at around 12:10 am, the police saw a person moving around suspiciously in front of the gate of Hemant Karkare Garden, near Sahakari Bhandar, Poonam Nagar, Jogeshwari (East), Mumbai. PI Kholam found the person’s movements suspicious and the police team tried to stop him. On seeing the police, the said person tried to run away from there, however, with the help of the police team, he was arrested on the spot. During interrogation, the person initially gave evasive answers. Later, after taking him into confidence and conducting further detailed interrogation, a dark colored powder, which was said to be Heroin, was recovered from his possession.

The police searched the said person in compliance with all the legal requirements of the NDPS Act, 1985. Heroin weighing 302 grams, worth approximately ₹3,50,00,000 (Rupees 3 crore 50 lakhs), was recovered from his possession.

In this case, a case has been registered under Section 8(c) read with Section 21(c) of the NDPS Act under Case No. 943/2026 on the basis of a complaint received at MIDC Police Station, Mumbai. During the investigation, it was also revealed that the said drugs were being supplied in the area of ​​MIDC Police Station. Further investigation of the case is underway.

Thus, PI Kholam, Officer of the Anti-Narcotics Team of MIDC Police Station and his team carried out a remarkable operation of timely arresting the accused drug dealer Tauseef Liaquat Qazi (29) and seizing 302 grams of heroin, worth ₹3.50 crores, from his possession. The successful operation was carried out under the guidance of senior police officers, including Mumbai Police Commissioner Devin Bharti, Joint Police Commissioner Dr. Manoj Kumar Sharma, Additional Police Commissioner Dr. Abhinav Deshmukh, Deputy Police Commissioner Datta Nalawade and Assistant Police Commissioner Yogesh Shinde. The operation was directly supervised by Senior Police Inspector Ghanshyam Nair and Police Inspector (Crime) Sunil Karande.

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Maharashtra

FIR registered in Ganpati idol desecration case, situation under control in Mazgaon; DCP Jayant Meena targeted by Hindu organizations

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Tension prevailed in the Mazgaon area of ​​Mumbai when an incident of eggs being thrown at the Ganpati procession from a high-rise tower took place, after which the situation became tense and the police brought the situation under control and restarted the Ganpati procession. According to the details, the Ganpati procession was passing through the Mazgaon area when some unknown mischievous anti-social elements tried to desecrate the Ganpati idol by throwing eggs, after which Hindu organizations blocked the road and started a full-scale protest. DCP Jayant Meena reached the spot and tried to control the situation, but at the same time he was also surrounded by the crowd, but despite this, the DCP acted courageously and controlled the situation and established peace. But now the same DCP Jayant Meena has come on the hit list of Hindu organizations. He is being targeted on the social media accounts of Hindu organizations. This makes it clear that this raises the question that Hindu organizations do not have faith in the administration and the police. In the case of desecration of the idol of Ganpati, the police have registered a case under sections 299, 196 of the Bharatiya Naya Sanhita BNS. The accused has been identified. The police have identified him from the CCTV footage. At present, tension persists but peace is prevailing. The police have made strict security arrangements at the places. After this incident, a conspiracy to incite communal violence has also started in Mumbai city by the sectarians and after throwing eggs at the procession, Hindu extremist organizations are also criticizing the role of the DCP. DCP Jayant Meena has come under the target of Hindu extremist organizations, right wing. At present, the DCP said that the situation is peaceful and the police is taking necessary action in this matter. The police are also investigating whether more people are involved in this matter and what is the conspiracy behind it. This is the second incident of throwing eggs at Ganpati. Earlier, an egg was thrown at the idol of Ganpati in Kamatipura. Such an incident The police are also investigating why this is happening, but after this incident, it has become clear once again that Hindu extremist organizations do not trust the police action, which is why they are confronting the DCP. The police have not made any arrests in this matter so far, while the search for the accused is ongoing.

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