New Delhi, July 14, 2023: The Supreme Court has taken cognizance of a petition against the delay in deciding disqualification petitions against Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and the MLAs supporting him. The notice was issued to Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar, who has been urged to expedite the hearing process. Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Sunil Prabhu, in his capacity as the chief whip of the undivided Shiv Sena, had filed the disqualification petitions against Shinde and 15 other MLAs after they rebelled and formed a new government with the BJP in June 2022.
Prabhu approached the apex court seeking direction to the assembly speaker to promptly hear the disqualification petitions, alleging deliberate delays despite the Supreme Court’s previous order in May 2022. The court had instructed the Speaker to decide on the petitions within a reasonable time period.
In response to the court’s notice, Priyanka Chaturvedi, a Sena (UBT) leader and Rajya Sabha member, expressed her sentiments on Twitter, stating, “Time up for the traitor gang!”
Speaker Narvekar confirmed that he had received a copy of the Shiv Sena’s constitution from the Election Commission of India and assured that the hearing on the disqualification petitions would commence soon.
The Supreme Court’s intervention in this matter comes after it refused to disqualify the rebel Shiv Sena MLAs, including Eknath Shinde, in May 2022. The court emphasized that it cannot ordinarily adjudicate on disqualification petitions under the anti-defection law and directed the Speaker to make a decision within a reasonable period.
The political landscape in Maharashtra has witnessed further twists and turns, with MLAs from the rival Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), led by Ajit Pawar, joining the BJP-Shiv Sena government. Despite speculation about Shinde’s exit from the government after Pawar’s induction into the cabinet, the Chief Minister dismissed such rumors, asserting that the ruling alliance remains strong.
