13 October,2023 02:52 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
NCP Chief Sharad Pawar/ Sameer Markande
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) President Sharad Pawar requested the Supreme Court's intervention on Friday, seeking directives for Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar to decide on the disqualification petitions of Shiv Sena and NCP MLAs within a specific timeframe. Pawar expressed concern over the delay on the part of the speaker in reaching a decision on these pleas, which prompted the NCP to approach the apex court, stated a PTI report.
According to the report, the top court, taking a stern stance, criticised the assembly speaker for the prolonged delay in deciding on the disqualification plea of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and several MLAs. The apex court said that the speaker "cannot defy" the orders of the top court. A bench, presided over by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, stressed that the decision on disqualification pleas must be made before the next assembly elections to prevent the entire process from becoming ineffective.
Pawar, responding to questions following the Supreme Court's observations, supported the idea of establishing a specific timeframe for decision-making, echoing the Shiv Sena's standpoint. The SC hearing was attended by NCP leaders Supriya Sule and Jitendra Awhad, as both the Shiv Sena and the NCP are eager for a prompt resolution of the disqualification issue involving rebel MLAs.
Meanwhile, senior Congress leader and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan noted that the Supreme Court had issued another directive against Speaker Narwekar, indicating a deliberate delay in resolving the Shiv Sena split that occurred one-and-a-half years ago. Reportedly, Chavan expressed concerns about the anti-defection law, which grants adjudicating powers to the speaker while being a member of a political party, suggesting that this law needs a comprehensive reevaluation.
Chavan mentioned that the Supreme Court, as the guardian of the Constitution and the rule of law, has the authority to initiate proceedings against the speaker, but questioned whether it would utilize its inherent power for this purpose, the report added.
On September 18, the Supreme Court directed the Maharashtra assembly speaker to specify a timeline for addressing the disqualification petitions against Chief Minister Shinde and other MLAs. Narwekar initiated the process to hear these pleas last month, filed by rival Shiv Sena factions led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his predecessor, Uddhav Thackeray. The first substantive hearing on disqualification pleas against Shinde and 15 other MLAs took place at Vidhan Bhavan on Thursday.
Notably, the disqualification petitions were filed by Sunil Prabhu from the Thackeray faction, acting as the chief whip of the undivided Shiv Sena, against Shinde and 15 other MLAs last year after the rebellion and subsequent party split. In July of this year, Ajit Pawar and eight other NCP MLAs joined the Shinde-led Shiv Sena-BJP government, causing a split in the party founded by Sharad Pawar.
