The Supreme Court has accepted the plea put forth by Uddhav Thackeray’s faction , challenging Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar’s declaration of Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena Bloc as the real political party after their split in June 2022. The Thackeray faction has alleged unconstitutional power intrusion and an unlawful government.
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New Delhi: The Supreme Court Today (05 Feb 2024) agreed to consider listing a plea of the Uddhav Thackeray faction challenging Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar’s order declaring the Shiv Sena bloc led by Eknath Shinde as the “real political party” after its split in June 2022. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra took note of the submissions of senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the Thackeray faction, that the plea, which was to be listed on Monday, has not come up. “We will see it”-the CJI said.
On January 22, the Supreme Court issued notifications to Chief Minister Shinde and other legislators from his faction in response to a petition filed by the Thackeray faction challenging the speaker’s ruling. Subsequently, the court scheduled a hearing for the plea two weeks later. The Thackeray faction alleges that Shinde has unlawfully seized power and is leading an unconstitutional government.
In his January 10 decision, Speaker Narwekar also dismissed the Thackeray faction’s request to disqualify 16 MLAs from the ruling group, including Shinde. Contesting the Speaker’s rulings, the Thackeray faction asserts that they are “clearly unlawful and biased,” contending that instead of penalizing defection, they reward defectors by recognizing them as part of the political party.
The Thackeray group has voiced concerns over the Speaker’s directives, fearing that Uddhav Thackeray and other legislators might be at risk of losing their seats in the Maharashtra Assembly if they fail to comply with the Speaker’s instructions.
In a letter to the Supreme Court, the Thackeray group argued that there is an “extreme urgency” in the matter, as the continued presence of MLAs from the Shinde group in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, holding key government positions including the Chief Minister, represents a blatant disregard for constitutional norms and democratic values.
The group has initiated Special Leave Petitions in response to four decisions made by the Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, which rejected the requests for disqualification.
The letter highlights that the judgments in question clearly demonstrate a defiance and rebellion against the 2018 Leadership Structure of the Shiv Sena Political Party, led by Uddhav Thackeray, by Eknath Shinde and other legislators. This defiance is grounds for disqualification under Sections 2 (1) (a) and 2 (1) (b) of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, also known as the ‘anti-defection law,’ which aims to prevent elected officials from switching parties for personal advantage.
Contrary to the principles of the Tenth Schedule, the Speaker concluded that the majority of the legislators represent the true will of the Shiv Sena, based on reasoning deemed unlawful.
The Uddhav Thackeray group is seeking an immediate halt to the Speaker’s ruling and interim measures to prevent the Shinde group’s MLAs from participating in the Assembly sessions.
Furthermore, the Thackeray faction has requested the suspension of the Shinde faction MLAs’ memberships while the petitions are being considered.
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