Supreme Court questions Maharashtra Speaker's ruling on Shiv Sena faction

The Supreme Court raised concerns over Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar's decision not to disqualify MLAs from Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction. The matter was brought to the court's attention during a hearing on a plea by Sunil Prabhu, a leader of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena group, challenging the Assembly speaker's decision in January.

Narwekar, on January 10, had determined that the group of MLAs led by Shinde constituted the real Shiv Sena when rival factions emerged in June 2022. He based his decision on the faction that enjoyed the support of the majority of MLAs.

However, Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, along with Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, raised questions about the consistency of Narwekar's ruling with the Supreme Court's May judgment.

In May, the apex court ruled that Maharashtra's then-governor, Bhagat Singh Koshyari, had made an error in asserting that the Thackeray government had lost its majority after a group of Shiv Sena MLAs, led by Shinde, rebelled in June 2022. Despite this, the court could not reinstate the Maha Vikas Aghadi government, as Thackeray had resigned without facing a floor test.

Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, representing the Thackeray faction, argued on Thursday that Narwekar's decision contradicted the court's earlier verdict. Chandrachud expressed his reservations, citing Paragraph 144 of Narwekar's ruling, where the speaker indicated that the legislative majority determined the real political party when rival factions emerged. The Chief Justice questioned whether this statement contradicted the court's previous judgment.

The Supreme Court had emphasized in May that the determination of the real Shiv Sena in the Assembly should not solely rely on a blind count of supporters. The court had clarified that the decision was not a mere game of numbers but required a more nuanced evaluation. It directed the speaker not to base their decision solely on numerical strength but to consider other factors.

The legal battle stems from the rebellion within the Shiv Sena party in June 2022, leading to conflicting claims regarding the legitimate political faction. The Election Commission had previously declared the Shinde-led faction as the real Shiv Sena in February 2023, relying on a test of strengths within the Assembly in terms of MLA support.