Two-third MPs cannot merge with Shinde Sena by themselves, Uddhav faction tells Lok Sabha speaker

Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leaders Arvind Sawant and Anil Desai met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Wednesday and argued that a group of rebel MPs, even if it constitutes two-thirds of the party’s legislature wing, cannot merge with another party on its own without an approval from the original party, The Times of India reported.

The meeting followed representations made by the Uddhav Sena after six of its nine Lok Sabha MPs joined the faction led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday.

Sawant and Desai said that they urged the speaker to ensure that the provisions of the Constitution’s Tenth Schedule, which details the anti-defection law, are followed before any decision is taken, the newspaper reported.

Desai told reporters after the meeting that only a political party can decide to merge with another and that such a decision is to be approved by the required number of legislators, PTI reported.

“We told him [Birla] we are the original party, and that Shiv Sena (UBT) and its chief Uddhav Thackeray haven’t decided to merge with any party, and there is no such plan in the future,” The Times of India quoted Desai as saying.

Desai added that the delegation had submitted a letter from Thackeray to the speaker and expressed confidence that a “custodian of...

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