The Supreme Court will hear in August the plea filed by the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction, challenging the Maharashtra Speaker’s decision that awarded the iconic Shiv Sena “bow and arrow” symbol to the Eknath Shinde-led group.
New Delhi: : The Supreme Court announced on Monday that it will hear a plea from the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction in August, contesting the Maharashtra assembly speaker’s decision to award the “bow and arrow” party symbol to the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction.
A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi stated that the matter has been pending for an extended period and that this uncertainty cannot be allowed to persist.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who represented the Uddhav faction informed the bench,
“We will be fixing the matter in August for final disposal of the main case,”
Sibal expressed the need for a swift resolution due to upcoming local body elections in the state.
Senior advocate Neeraj Kishan Kaul, representing the Shinde faction, noted that the court had previously declined an urgent hearing on the issue. Sibal contended that the assembly speaker’s decision to assign the symbol to the opposing party in 2023, based on legislative majority, contradicted a ruling from a Constitution bench of the Supreme Court.
Justice Kant remarked,
“We will give the exact date of listing of the matter later as we don’t want to clash with other cases.”
The top court, On May 7, directed the Thackeray-led faction to focus on local body elections after they sought an urgent hearing regarding the speaker’s decision. The court indicated that the matter would be addressed following the summer recess.
Maharashtra assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar, On January 10, 2024, dismissed the Shiv Sena (UBT) plea to disqualify 16 MLAs from the ruling camp, including Shinde.
Challenging the speaker’s decisions in the Supreme Court, the Thackeray-led faction claimed they were “patently unlawful and perverse,” arguing that instead of punishing defection, the speaker rewarded defectors by asserting that they represented the legitimate political party
Also Read: Supreme Court: Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena Questions Speaker’s Neutrality
The speaker was criticized for ruling that the majority of legislators from Shiv Sena represented the will of the political party. His decision did not disqualify any MLAs from the opposing camps, further solidifying Shinde’s position as chief minister 18 months after he led a rebellion against Thackeray.
This ruling bolstered Shinde’s influence in the ruling coalition, which includes the BJP and the NCP (Ajit Pawar group), ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha and state assembly elections.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Shinde faction secured seven parliamentary seats, while the faction led by Thackeray won 57 seats in the assembly elections.
The BJP claimed 132 seats, and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP obtained 41 seats. By December 2024, Fadnavis returned as , with Shinde and Pawar serving as deputy chief ministers.
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