The Shiv Sena UBT led by Uddhav Thackeray appears headed for a split with at least five of its nine Lok Sabha members learnt to have asked for an appointment with Speaker Om Birla.
These MPs had recently skipped a meeting called by Uddhav at his Mumbai home.
Meanwhile, Uddhav has called a meeting of the Shiv Sena UBT parliamentary party in Delhi on June 19 and asked all MPs to attend it.
The Sena UBT MPs likely to meet the Speaker on Wednesday may convey their decision to be treated as a separate bloc backing the BJP-led NDA.
The government is keen to reach the two-thirds majority mark in the House soon to pass the women’s reservation bill which it has linked to delimitation. The bill was defeated in a special session by a joint opposition.
Ruling party leaders have said that they will call a special session once they get the two-thirds numbers in Lok Sabha and will pass the bill.
The TMC has already split with the Sena UBT going the same way.
The NDA has 293 MPs in Lok Sabha and will reach 313 if 20 TMC rebel members are recognised as a separate bloc backing the government. If the Sena UBT members follow suit the NDA will reach 318. The government is in talks with the DMK to seek its support.
The two-thirds mark in Lok Sabha is 360 in a House of 543. There are three vacancies at present making 540 as the effective strength of the House.
