Fresh photographs linked to Operation Tiger have emerged, showing six former Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) MPs meeting Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla before officially joining the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena. The images have reignited political debate over the carefully planned defection that unfolded in Delhi and dealt another blow to the Uddhav Thackeray camp. The meeting reportedly took place days before the lawmakers formally announced their decision to break away.
Operation Tiger gathered momentum through behind-the-scenes meetings
According to News 18, the six MPs met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla at his residence in New Delhi on June 17 and submitted a letter seeking recognition as a separate parliamentary group. The lawmakers reportedly argued that they were opposed to what they described as Uddhav Thackeray’s plans to align more closely with the Congress, making it difficult for them to remain in the faction.
The newly surfaced photographs show the rebel MPs alongside Om Birla. Shrikant Shinde, MP and son of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, as well as Maharashtra minister Pratap Sarnaik, were also present during the meeting.
The images have become one of the clearest visual records of the political exercise that came to be known as Operation Tiger.
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Delhi meetings paved the way for the political shift
News 18 suggests that the day’s developments were carefully coordinated. Rebel MP Omraje Nimbalkar reportedly met the Speaker separately early in the morning before leaving for Maharashtra after signing the required documents.
The remaining five MPs, Sanjay Dina Patil, Sanjay Jadhav, Sanjay Deshmukh, Nagesh Patil Ashtikar and Bhausaheb Wakchaure, gathered at a hotel in Delhi before travelling to the Speaker’s residence. The group later completed the formalities required for their defection.
The move was reportedly planned to ensure compliance with anti-defection provisions by securing the necessary numbers before making the switch public.
Shinde calls Operation Tiger a successful political milestone
After the MPs joined his faction, Eknath Shinde declared Operation Tiger a complete success, comparing it to the 2022 rebellion that split the Shiv Sena in Maharashtra.
Welcoming the lawmakers, Shinde described them as experienced leaders with strong public support and said their arrival had further strengthened what he called the “real Shiv Sena.”
The latest revelations have once again brought Maharashtra’s political realignment into focus, with questions being raised over the planning and execution of the operation that reshaped the party’s parliamentary strength.