India, June 22 -- Deputy chief minister and Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde's son Shrikant, who is an MP from Kalyan, played a major role in splitting Uddhav Thackeray's party for the second time in four years.

According to party insiders, Shrikant worked on the breakaway MPs for over a year. Two of them were his party colleagues in Lok Sabha when they were together in the united Shiv Sena. He maintained cordial relations with the rest of them, with some help from, Prataprao Jadhav, Sena minister in the union government.

Shrikant camped in the Capital during the entire 'operation' and played a key role in everything from logistics to legal consultation. Following the latest episode, there is a demand in the party to elevate him in the par...