In an emotional appeal to his party leaders and cadre on the 60^th foundation day of Shiv Sena (UBT), Uddhav Thackeray on Friday (June 19, 2026) offered to step down as the party’s president if his leaders believed in the allegations levelled against him by the defected parliamentarians.

He also called for starting ‘Operation Lotus’ in response to ‘Operation Tiger’ allegedly carried out by the Shiv Sena to lure six of its nine Lok Sabha MPs into its fold. Mr. Thackeray also refuted allegations that his party was likely to merge with the Congress.

‘BJP’s dirty politics’

Targeting the BJP for indulging in “dirty politics”, he said that Gen Z, which was being termed as “cockroaches”, will bring about a change in the country.

He hit out at the ruling party for sending 2.5 lakh paramilitary forces in West Bengal “to defeat a woman”, challenging the government to station that many personnel in Manipur or Pakistan-occupied Kashmir instead. “The BJP is moving from ‘One Nation, One Election’, to ‘One Nation, No Election’,” he pointed out.

“We will have to do Operation Lotus. The way politics of this country is being conducted, people’s faith in democracy is eroding. This is a threat to democracy. The way we are going currently, we are moving towards anarchy,” he said.

Taking a dig at the MPs who have allegedly defected, he said that his party did not merge with the BJP despite being allied with them for 30 years. “And those who are leaving say that they feared we will merge with the Congress,” he said while speaking to a charged up cadre at Mumbai’s Shanmukhanand Hall on Friday night where he was accompanied by his son Aaditya Thackeray, wife Rashmi Thackeray, party MLAs and MPs.

True heirs: Shinde

Meanwhile, during the foundation day event at NESCO Ground in Goregaon area of the city, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde hinted at more defections from the Shiv Sena (UBT). Without referring to ‘Operation Tiger’, he said that “what was seen was only a trailer, and that the movie was yet to be screened”.

“Balasaheb Thackeray’s true heirs are my Shiv Sainiks. Succession is not determined by blood relations but by ideology. Shiv Sena is not a piece of land; it is the ideology of millions of people,” he told the gathering.

These events played out amid turbulence in Maharashtra’s political scene due to speculation that six MPs from Shiv Sena (UBT) are likely to defect and join Mr. Shinde’s Shiv Sena. This will bring down the party’s strength in Parliament from nine MPs to three.

Shiv Sena (UBT) is an important ally in the opposition INDIA bloc. The party has already initiated disciplinary action against these six MPs for failing to attend its parliamentary board meeting. This is the second split in the last four years to have rocked the party. In 2022, Mr. Shinde had taken with him 40 of the 55 MLAs of the previous State Assembly, claiming the original party and party symbol.

I don’t run away: Thackeray

Responding to allegations levelled against him by the defected parliamentarians that he was never available and that they could not get his time or attention, Mr. Thackeray on Friday initially criticised them but made an emotional appeal to them towards the end of his speech. Stressing that the Thackeray family had never sought power, he said: “All these allegations are being levelled against me. You (defecting MPs) tell me. Do you believe in them? If yes, I am willing to step down right now. I have only one appeal. Do not let this Shiv Sena get into the hands of thieves. One of you should come up and I am willing to hand it over to you right now. You should answer those who level allegations against me. I don’t run away. I will stand strong. But I want your support,” he said.

He asked the cadre if they were willing to stay with him in case he did not fight elections or offer them any tickets. He expressed gratitude towards all the party members for standing by him and his family for 60 years.

Hitting out at the BJP and the Shiv Sena for levelling allegations against the Thackeray family, he said nobody saw the sufferings that the family has had to go through all these years. He reiterated that the family has never been attached to power and that he was forced to take the Chief Ministerial position in 2019 due to the circumstances prevailing at the time.