The Supreme Court of India has issued a directive to Maharashtra assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar, instructing him to render a decision on the disqualification petitions filed against Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and the legislators supporting him by December 31. This directive comes after the court had previously criticized Narwekar for prolonging the adjudication of these disqualification petitions, emphasizing the importance of adhering to their orders. In response to Narwekar’s delay, the court has now established a deadline to expedite the process.
The court’s impatience with the delay in proceedings was evident when it stated, “We are concerned about maintaining the dignity of this court. Our orders must be complied with.” This stern message was conveyed by the court on October 13.
Previously, on October 18, the court had once again urged the Maharashtra assembly speaker to provide a realistic timeframe for the hearing of disqualification petitions against Shiv Sena MLAs.
The Supreme Court has further emphasized that a verdict on the disqualification petitions must be reached before the upcoming assembly elections, highlighting that any further delay could render the entire process futile.
The internal turmoil within the Shiv Sena party resulted in numerous disqualification petitions being filed against one another after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and 39 MLAs defected from the parent party to align with the BJP, subsequently forming the government. In July, Speaker Narwekar issued notices to 40 MLAs from the Shinde-led Sena and 14 from the Thackeray faction, soliciting their responses to the disqualification petitions against them. In total, notices were issued to 54 MLAs. Notably, Sena (UBT) MLA Rutuja Latke, who was elected after the Shiv Sena’s division last year, did not receive a notice.
Sunil Prabhu from the Thackeray faction had filed the disqualification petitions against Shinde and 15 other MLAs last year, following the internal rebellion and division within the party.
On May 11 of this year, the Supreme Court ruled that Eknath Shinde would remain the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, and the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition government led by Thackeray could not be reinstated. This decision came after Thackeray chose to resign without undergoing a floor test in response to Shinde’s rebellion.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) has consistently accused Speaker Narwekar of deliberately prolonging the process of arriving at a decision on the disqualification petitions. Narwekar has responded by assuring that he will not rush into a decision to prevent a “miscarriage of justice,” although he will not further delay it either.
Sources By Agencies
