Maharashtra political crisis: Floor test order 'unlawful', Shiv Sena leaders question move

Sanjay Raut. Pic/PTI

Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari has asked the Uddhav Thackeray government in the state to prove majority on the floor of the House on June 30.

The Governor has written to the state Assembly secretary to convene a special session of the State Assembly tomorrow with the only agenda of a trust vote against CM Thackeray. According to the notification, the session will commence at 11 am which will also be telecast live.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut termed the Maharashtra Governor's order asking the Uddhav Thackeray-led government to prove majority in the House as "unlawful", saying that the Supreme Court is yet to decide on the disqualification of 16 rebel MLAs.

Raut also took a dig at governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari, saying that he acted swiftly after a group of BJP leaders met him and urged him to ask the government to prove its majority in the Assembly in view of the rebellion in the ruling Shiv Sena.

"This (floor test order) is an unlawful activity as pleas of disqualification of 16 MLAs are pending before the Supreme Court. If such unlawful activities take place, and if the governor and the BJP trample upon the Constitution, then the SC has to interfere," Raut told reporters in the morning.

"We will go to the Supreme Court and seek justice. We are confident that if the floor test is carried out in accordance with the law, then we will definitely win," he added.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi on Wednesday said holding of the floor test amounted to contempt of the Supreme Court proceedings as the apex court is hearing the disqualification of 16 MLAs of the breakaway camp of the Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde.

"How can a floor test be asked for when the disqualification of 16 MLA has been deferred by the Supreme Court till 11th July? How can these MLAs participate in the floor test till their disqualification status is not decided and the other matters for which notice sent is subjudice?" she tweeted.

"This would be contempt of court proceedings if the floor test was conducted despite the matter not getting a final hearing in the SC," Chaturvedi added in her tweet.

In a jolt to the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra, senior Shiv Sena Minister Eknath Shinde and other rebel MLAs revolted against the party on June 20 and camped in Gujarat's Surat. Later, the rebel MLAs shifted base to a hotel in Guwahati.

On Monday, a separate plea was filed by Shinde in Supreme Court court regarding the safety of the legislators who have challenged party chief and Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray. A bench of Justices Surya Kant and JB Pardiwala heard the pleas on Monday.

"This is the win of the Hindutva of Balasaheb Thackeray and the ideas of Anand Dighe," Eknath Shinde tweeted after the Supreme Court deferred the disqualification proceedings of rebel MLAs till July 11.