Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday, 20 June delivered a pointed jibe at Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, declaring at a public event in Kolhapur that Maharashtra's political landscape now has no 'faction' — only 'one authentic Shiv Sena' under Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The remarks came amid mounting reports of a fresh rebellion within Thackeray's party, with several of its Lok Sabha MPs openly defying the leadership.

Shah's remarks at Kolhapur event

Shah made the statement while addressing a public gathering in Kolhapur, where he laid the foundation stone for the ₹1,445.97 crore Mahalakshmi (Ambabai) Temple development and corridor project. In a moment that drew attention, Shah paused deliberately before introducing Shinde, addressing him as the 'President of Shiv Sena and Maharashtra's Deputy Chief Minister.'

'Earlier, we had to refer to them as the Shiv Sena Shinde faction. But now, no faction remains anymore; there is only one Shiv Sena,' Shah said.

'Operation Tiger' and the rebellion within UBT

Shah's remarks are widely seen as a formal acknowledgment of the political operation internally referred to as 'Operation Tiger' — reportedly aimed at engineering a significant split in Thackeray's party. The operation reportedly gained momentum earlier this week when six out of nine Shiv Sena (UBT) Lok Sabha MPs skipped a crucial parliamentary party meeting convened by Thackeray in New Delhi, defying a formal party whip. The scale of the no-show has raised serious questions about Thackeray's grip on his own legislators.

This comes amid a broader pattern: Shiv Sena has already survived one high-profile split — in 2022, when Shinde led a rebellion that toppled the Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government and eventually won legal recognition as the 'real' Shiv Sena from the Election Commission of India.

Shinde's 'trailer' warning

A day before Shah's address, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde dropped heavy hints of further political movement. 'This is just the trailer, the movie is still to come,' Shinde said, addressing party workers in combative terms.

Responding to opposition taunts without naming anyone directly, Shinde said: 'People were asking what Eknath Shinde would say, who would take the stage, and what would happen? Look, this tiger stands right in front of you today!'

Shinde also took aim at critics with sharp rhetoric: 'I have been watching for the past couple of days; a few dogs are barking daily. But let me tell you, dogs bark in packs, but a lion walks alone.'

UBT's counter-threat and Raut's warning

The Shiv Sena (UBT) has not remained silent. Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut issued what he termed an 'Operation Tudava' (Operation Stomp) counter-threat, warning that party workers would 'stomp' any rebel lawmakers who entered their constituencies. Shinde's remarks on Friday were seen as a direct rebuttal of Raut's warning, though neither Thackeray nor Raut was named explicitly.

What comes next

With Shah publicly backing Shinde's claim to the sole Shiv Sena identity and the UBT camp facing defections at the parliamentary level, the coming days are likely to determine whether 'Operation Tiger' results in a formal merger or a fresh floor test. Political observers note that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s open endorsement of Shinde signals the ruling Mahayuti alliance's confidence heading into the next electoral cycle in Maharashtra.