SC Issues Notice on Uddhav Faction's Petition to Expedite Disqualification Pleas against CM Shinde, Others

The Supreme Court on Friday issued a notice on a plea filed by Uddhav Thackeray faction against the delay by the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker in deciding the disqualification petitions filed against Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his camp.

A bench of Chief Justice of India, D.Y. Chandrachud, Justice P.S. Narasimha, and Justice Manoj Misra sought responses of Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar and CM Eknath Shinde within a period of two weeks.

"Issue notice. Returnable within two weeks," ordered the court.

Senior advocate Devadatt Kamat, appeared for Shiv Sena-UBT leader Sunil Prabhu, who in his plea alleged that Speaker Rahul Narwekar is delaying the adjudications of the disqualification plea to permit "the illegal continuance of Eknath Shinde as Chief Minister, against whom the disqualification petitions are pending".

The Thackeray faction had moved the apex court on July 4 against the delay by the Speaker in deciding the disqualification petitions pending against Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his camp.

On May 11, a constitution bench of the Supreme Court had directed that the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker "must decide disqualification petitions in a reasonable time" against 16 Shiv Sena MLAs, including Shinde, who were accused of anti-party activities.

In its recent judgment around the Maharashtra political crisis, the top court had refused to reinstate Uddhav Thackery as the Chief Minister as he had tendered his resignation voluntarily before facing the floor test in the House. The five judges unanimously had held that then Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari was not justified in calling upon Thackeray to prove his majority, but said that it was justified to invite Eknath Shinde to form the government after the post of the Chief Minister felt vacant as Thackeray tendered resignation on June 29.

Declaring the decision taken by the Speaker to recognise Bharat Gogawale (from Shinde faction) as the Chief Whip of Shiv Sena in place of Prabhu as "contrary to law", the CJI, D.Y. Chandrachud-led constitution bench had held that the political party and not the legislature party appoints the Whip and the Leader of the party in the House.