NEW DELHI: In a significant political development ahead of the Monsoon Session of Parliament, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has approved the merger of six Members of Parliament from the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) faction with the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
The decision comes just two days before Parliament is scheduled to reconvene for its Monsoon Session on July 20.
The approval strengthens the numerical position of the Shinde-led Shiv Sena in the Lok Sabha. Following the merger, the party’s strength in the Lower House has increased from seven MPs to 13, marking another major shift in the political landscape after the split within the Shiv Sena.
In another important decision, the Lok Sabha Speaker also granted separate seating arrangements to 20 MPs who broke away from the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and subsequently formed the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI).
While the MPs will now sit separately in the Lok Sabha, their demand for formal recognition as members of the newly formed NCPI has not yet been approved.
According to parliamentary sources, the issue of granting official recognition to the Nationalist Citizens Party of India remains under consideration. No final decision has been taken on the matter, and the Speaker is expected to examine the legal and constitutional implications before arriving at a conclusion.
Both the Trinamool Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) have strongly opposed the actions of their former MPs and had approached the Lok Sabha Speaker seeking their disqualification under the provisions of the anti-defection law. The petitions argued that the rebel lawmakers had voluntarily given up their party membership and should therefore cease to hold their seats in Parliament.
Despite the pending disqualification demands, the rebel TMC MPs are expected to participate in Sunday’s all-party meeting convened ahead of the Monsoon Session. Their attendance is likely to attract political attention as discussions continue over their parliamentary status.
Before arriving at the latest decisions, Speaker Om Birla held separate meetings with delegations representing both sides of the disputes. A Trinamool Congress delegation led by party leader Abhishek Banerjee met the Speaker to present the party’s objections against the breakaway MPs. The Speaker also interacted with representatives of the rebel TMC group to hear their position.
A similar consultative process was undertaken in the case of the Shiv Sena. Representatives of both the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction and the Eknath Shinde-led group were given an opportunity to present their respective arguments before the Speaker considered the matter.
Sources said the Speaker also sought the opinion of legal and constitutional experts attached to Parliament before taking the decisions. Their inputs were considered essential in examining the provisions governing mergers, recognition of parliamentary groups, and issues relating to the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, commonly known as the anti-defection law.
The developments come at a politically significant time, with the Monsoon Session of Parliament beginning on July 20. The session is expected to witness intense debates on a range of legislative and political issues, and the revised party strengths and seating arrangements in the Lok Sabha are likely to influence parliamentary proceedings.
While the merger of the six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs with the Shinde-led faction has now received formal approval, the question of granting official recognition to the Nationalist Citizens Party of India remains unresolved, ensuring that the issue is likely to remain under close political and legal scrutiny in the days ahead.