New Delhi (India), 11th May 2023: Supreme Court is all set to pronounce its judgement on the Maharashtra political crisis today. The court is mulling over the disqualification of 16 MLAs from current CM Eknath Shinde’s camp.
This comes as a 5-judge constitution bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud has been hearing a batch of petitions filed by both the groups from Sena. Earlier today, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut expressed how everyone awaits the verdict that will ultimately show ‘if there is democracy left in this country and if the judiciary is independent.’
The SC has now questioned the validity of reinstating Udhav Thackeray as the CM, given that he had resigned without facing the floor test, ‘accepting’ that he was in the minority. The bench had quashed the Thackeray camp’s request to halt the proceedings before the ECI on the Shinde camp’s request to recognise his group as the true Shiv Sena and give it the party’s ‘bow and arrow’ election symbol.
The issue began with the legislative council elections last year after possibilities of cross-voting were suspected. The then CM, Uddhav Thackeray, had called for an urgent meeting of the Shiv Sena MLAs, in which 12 MLAs, including Eknath Shinde, couldn’t be traced.
Following weeks of ‘resort politics’ and turmoil within the party itself, ex-CM Thackeray withdrew from his position after state Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari mandated the government to appear for a floor test.
