The Supreme Court is set to hear a crucial plea on Tuesday filed by Shiv Sena-UBT leader Sunil Prabhu, challenging the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar’s ruling. The ruling, delivered on January 10, declared the faction led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde as the “real” Shiv Sena.
A Supreme Court bench, headed by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and comprising Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, had earlier issued notices to CM Shinde and 38 other MLAs from his camp, seeking their response to the matter.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led faction has contested Narwekar’s ruling, arguing that despite CM Shinde’s claim of commanding a majority in the legislature and the party’s National Executive, the decision was flawed. Thackeray’s group also disputes the Speaker’s dismissal of disqualification petitions against Shinde and his MLAs.
In response, CM Shinde and his camp have requested that the Supreme Court refer the Shiv Sena-UBT’s plea to the Bombay High Court for further adjudication.
Meanwhile, it should be noted that the Bombay High Court has already issued notices to 14 Shiv Sena-UBT MLAs in a petition filed by Bharat Gogavale, the Chief Whip of the ruling Shiv Sena, seeking their disqualification.
Uddhav Thackeray’s faction avoided disqualification after the Speaker dismissed cross-petitions from both sides during the January 10 ruling, leaving the legislative dispute unresolved.
In a related hearing, the Supreme Court will also consider a similar plea from the Sharad Pawar-led faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Jayant Patil, a leader of the NCP, has sought disqualification of Ajit Pawar faction MLAs for defecting and joining the Sena-BJP government.
