Former Maharashtra Minister and former Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA), Babanrao Gholap, has announced his resignation from the primary membership of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT). Gholap, who had served as the legislator of the Deolali constituency in Nashik for a total of five terms between 1990 and 2014, has been discontent with Thackeray’s leadership for a while. His disaffection intensified after Bhausaheb Wackchaure, the former Member of Parliament (MP) from Shirdi, joined the Shiv Sena (UBT), reportedly diminishing Gholap’s chances of obtaining the candidature for the Shirdi Lok Sabha constituency.

Gholap, who is a deputy leader of the Sena (UBT), posted a short one-line resignation letter addressed to Thackeray on X (formerly Twitter). He was dissatisfied with the lack of response from the party leadership regarding his grievances. It is reported that Gholap’s son, Yogesh Gholap, and other local leaders are also expected to join Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s ruling faction within the Shiv Sena.

This is not the first time that the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction has experienced such resignations. Last year, former MLA Shishir Shinde, another ex-Deputy Leader of the Sena (UBT), left Thackeray’s side. Shinde had previously gained notoriety as one of the Shiv Sena activists involved in digging up the Wankhede Stadium cricket pitch in Mumbai ahead of an India-Pakistan match in 1991, leading to the cancellation of the series. He had temporarily joined Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena but later returned to Uddhav Thackeray’s Sena.

In Gholap’s case, he had previously resigned as Deputy Leader of the Sena (UBT), although his resignation was not accepted. He had also held discussions with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde a few days prior to his resignation from the party. Gholap’s son, Yogesh Gholap, had become an MLA from the Deolali constituency in 2014 but was defeated by the Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) Saroj Ahire in the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly polls.

The continuous attrition within the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena faction serves as a setback for the party and highlights some of the dissatisfaction and internal conflicts faced by the leadership. The departure of Babanrao Gholap, along with other party members, to join Eknath Shinde’s ruling faction may further weaken Thackeray’s position within the party.