Shiv Sena disqualification pleas: I see no hurdles in giving order by Jan 10, says Speaker Narwekar

Rahul Narwekar/ Pic: Ashish Raje

Maharashtra assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar expressed confidence in delivering a verdict on the cross-petitions from rival factions of Shiv Sena by January 10, 2024. The hearings, encompassing arguments from both sides led by Eknath Shinde and Uddhav Thackeray, have concluded. The Supreme Court extended the deadline for the speaker to decide on these cross-petitions to January 10, 2024, after initially setting it for December 31, 2023, stated a report in PTI.

Narwekar, who conducted daily hearings in Mumbai following the Supreme Court's mandate, continued the process during the state legislature's winter session in Nagpur. He assured that the decision would align with legal provisions and constitutional considerations after thoroughly examining all documents.

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"I do not see any hurdle in giving the order by January 10. The decision will be based on the law and constitutional provisions," the speaker said in Vidhan Bhavan, as per PTI and added, "I have followed all the legal provisions. The order will be out as mandated by the Supreme Court after we peruse all the documents and study them."

The Supreme Court had previously expressed concern about the delay in ruling on the disqualification petitions and urged the speaker to follow a reasonable schedule, stated the PTI report. The report added that the disqualification petitions were filed against 56 MLAs of both factions, of which, around 40 backed CM Eknath Shinde. The Thackeray faction had moved the Supreme Court to demand a deadline-bound resolution, charging that the speaker was purposefully holding off.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sunil Prabhu filed the plea. He, as the chief whip of undivided Shiv Sena had fled the disqualification petitions against Shinde and other MLAs in 2022. He in his plea to expedite proceedings had alleged that the speaker was deliberately delaying the adjudication despite the Supreme Court order asking him to decide on the cross-faction disqualification pleas within a "reasonable" time.

In addition, a different appeal from the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party faction demanded that the disqualification cases against Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and the MLAs who sided with Pawar Jr be resolved as soon as possible.

With PTI inputs