2 UBT MPs Nagesh Ashtikar, Sanjay Deshmukh attend Sena minister's Delhi dinner meet

MUMBAI/SAMBHAJINAGAR: Two MPs of the Uddhav Thackeray camp, Nagesh Ashtikar (Hingoli) and Sanjay Deshmukh (Yavatmal-Washim), attended a dinner meet hosted by Shiv Sena Union minister Pratap Jadhav in New Delhi on Wednesday, leading to speculation of a possible rift in the Shiv Sena (UBT) and a section of its MPs breaking away. However, Sena (UBT) netas said ministers host such dinners in New Delhi, and there was nothing more to the matter.

Eyebrows were also raised as Sanjay Jadhav, Sena (UBT) MP from Parbhani, met Union home minister Amit Shah in Delhi on Wednesday. However, Jadhav later clarified that his visit was to request a separate census column for the Vimukta Jati (Denotified Tribes), Nomadic Tribes and tribal communities in the 2027 census.

On attending Pratap Jadhav's dinner, Ashtikar said, "These meetings must not be viewed from a political angle. It was Jadhav's anniversary dinner. He gave us the invitation in Parliament, so we went there as courtesy for only 5-10 minutes."

Ashtikar also said that speculation around 'Operation Tiger', a possible attempt to win over UBT Sena's MPs, had been on ever since Sena (UBT) won nine Lok Sabha seats from Maharashtra, maintaining that such talks would remain mere conjecture.

In Feb 2025, a similar controversy had broken out over Sena (UBT) MPs attending dinner meetings and events in New Delhi hosted by the Dy CM Eknath Shinde-led Sena's Union ministers and MPs. During a visit to Delhi, Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray had spoken to his party's MPs and was said to have told them to avoid attending events hosted by Shinde Sena's ministers or MPs or at least take prior permission from the party, since it led to speculation about possible defections.

However, Sena (UBT) MPs said it was the norm in Delhi to attend dinners or events hosted by ministers from Maharashtra and it was not right to stop MPs from going to such events.