Rajan Salvi joins Shinde Sena: Is operation Tiger in full swing?

To contain the damage, Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray had a closed-door meeting with party MPs, in which they were advised to steer clear of rival party leaders

Mumbai: Eknath Shinde hit the Shiv Sena (UBT) where it hurts by inducting Rajan Salvi into his camp on Thursday. But more than stealing a senior Sena (UBT) leader, the Shiv Sena chief appears to have signalled the launch of ‘Operation Tiger’ – his campaign to poach leaders from the rival Sena (UBT), a strategic move ahead of local body elections in Maharashtra later this year.

Thane, India - February 13, 2025: Former Deputy Leadet of ShivSena UBT and former MLA from Rajapur Ratnagiri has joined ShivSena in presence of deputy CM Eknath shinde at tembhi Naka shivsena shakha in thane ,in Thane,in Mumbai, India, on, Thursday, February -13, 2024. ( Praful Gangurde /HT Photo )

Fuelling this suspicion, four of the Sena (UBT)’s eight MPs were spotted mingling with the Shinde-led Sena in Delhi earlier this week. Three of them attended a dinner hosted by Sena Union minister Prataprao Jadhav on Wednesday. Another MP, Sanjay Patil, attended an event that has caused much heartburn in the Sena (UBT) camp – Shinde’s felicitation by NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar in New Delhi on Tuesday. Patil went on to attend the post-felicitation dinner hosted by Shinde’s son Shrikant, a Sena MP.

To contain the damage, Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray had a closed-door meeting with party MPs, in which they were advised to steer clear of rival party leaders.

Possibly marking the launch Operation Tiger, Sena (UBT) deputy leader Rajan Salvi crossed sides and was inducted into the Sena in the presence of Shinde, industries minister Uday Samant and Rajapur MLA Kiran Samant on Thursday. A three-time MLA, Salvi had stood by Thackeray when Shinde split the party in 2022.

However, Salvi has been disenchanted with the Sena (UBT) since last year’s assembly election, where he was defeated by the Sena’s Kiran Samant. Salvi had blamed senior party leader Vinayak Raut for mishandling the party organisation in the Konkan and complained to Uddhav Thackeray. However, Thackeray admonished him, apparently the trigger for Salvi deciding to switch sides.

Significantly, Salvi is an arch rival of the Sena’s Uday Samant, who hails from Ratnagiri in the Konkan. Salvi and the Samant brothers – Uday and Kiran – met on Wednesday night at Shinde’s behest, to resolve their differences. They seemed to have patched things up as the Samants were present for Salvi’s induction.

Denying that an Anti-Corruption Bureau inquiry against him had anything to do with him joining the Sena, Salvi said: “I have not asked for the inquiry to be stopped because I have joined the ruling party. Complete it and take action against me if I am found guilty.”

While welcoming Salvi, Shinde was scathing in his criticism of Thackeray, saying it would do him well to introspect on why his people were leaving him. “After the Balasaheb Thackeray era, Shiv Sainiks were treated like servants and hence we had to revolt,” claimed Shinde.

Salvi’s defection is a jolt to Thackeray as he was a key leader in the Konkan, a former stronghold of the Sena (UBT). In the recent assembly election, the party won only one seat in the region’s three districts.

But the Sena (UBT) has bigger worries than Salvi’s defection. Three of the party’s MPs – Sanjay Jadhav (Parbhani), Nagesh Patil Ashtikar (Hingoli) and Bhausaheb Wakchaure (Shirdi) – attended a dinner hosted by Sena leader and Union minister Prataprao Jadhav in Delhi on Wednesday, only hours after party MP Sanjay Raut slammed NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar for felicitating and praising Eknath Shinde.

Even worse, Sena (UBT) MP from Mumbai North-East, Sanjay Patil, had not only attended Jadhav’s dinner but also Shinde’s felicitation event and the dinner hosted by Shinde’s son Shrikant, a Sena MP, on Tuesday.

That’s not all. Sena leaders have been claiming that most of Thackeray’s eight MPs are in touch with its leaders, potentially paving the way for more defections.

Sena (UBT) MP and party spokesperson Arvind Sawant was nonchalant, saying it was not unusual for former colleagues to mingle over dinner. “They had worked together in the party for a long time before the split. However, they should maintain party discipline,” he added.

“What’s wrong in attending the dinner? After all, Prataprao Jadhav and I worked together in the party since 2004,” said Sanjay Jadhav.

“There is no truth to speculation that our MPs could cross over,” said Nagesh Ashtikar. Significantly, Ashtikar himself had invited two Sena MPs – Naresh Mhaske and Shriang Barne – to a dinner party he had hosted recently.

Sanjay Patil, MP from Mumbai North-East, who had been elected as an MP from Mumbai North-East when he was with the undivided NCP, said he had attended Eknath Shinde felicitation as NCP (SP) chief Pawar was present. He said he had even posted pictures of him at the function, on social media, and had nothing to hide.

Sena leader and industries minister Uday Samant hinted at trouble ahead. “Some of them (MPs) have come out in the open, the rest will follow suit. Let the MPs decide what they want to do (about joining Shinde).”

(With inputs from G Mohiuddin Jeddy)