It seems like the political crisis in Maharashtra is not going to end soon. The Supreme Court will hear the plea filed by Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena faction challenging Gov. Bhagat Singh Koshiyari's direction to the Maha Vikas Aghadi MVA government to take a floor test in the Assembly on Thursday.
15 petitioners are Abdul Sattar, Prakash R Surve, Tanhaji Jaywant Savant, Sandeepan A Bhumre, Chimanrao R Patil, Balaji D Kalyankar, Yamini Jadhav, Anil Babar, Mahesh Shinde, Sanjay Raimulkar, Ramesh Bornare and Balaji Kinilkar.
The floor test is illegal and cannot include stigmatised names, according to senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi. The plea will be heard at 5 pm on Thursday by a vacation bench of Justices Surya Kant and JB Pardiwala. We will keep at 5 pm, according to the bench. It is important that paper books are supplied to parties concerned by 3 pm. Here are some top points to be kept in mind regarding the ongoing political fiasco in Maharashtra.
Governor Koshiyari asked Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA government to prove majority on the floor of the house at 5 pm tomorrow, while adding that the session will be recorded on video.
Koshiyari said that the floor test will be the only agenda of the House tomorrow. As many as 39 MLAs have shown their desire to leave the MVA government, he said. Seven independent MLAs have also sent a letter by email withdrawing their support. The Leader of Opposition also met and briefed me on the prevailing situation and asked for a floor test. Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut called the Governor's order for a floor test unconstitutional and said the Supreme Court is yet to decide on the disqualification of 16 rebel MLAs. Raut took a dig at the Raj Bhavan and said it has acted at a jet speed even faster than Rafale after BJP leaders met the governor.
He said this floor test order is illegal as pleas of disqualification of 16 MLAs are pending before the Supreme Court. If the BJP and the governor trample upon the Constitution, then the SC has to intervene. Eknath Shinde-led faction of dissident Shiv Sena MLAs will leave for a neighbouring state of Maharashtra later on Wednesday. The MLAs will be able to board a Chartered flight from Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International LGPI Airport in Guwahati in the afternoon. The faction has been camping at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Guwahati since June 22.
Shinde will donate 51 lakh to the CM's Relief Fund for Assam Floods. The government of Assam and Shiv Sena has been criticised by Himata Biswa Sarma for dragging the Maharashtra political crisis into the state at a time when it was devastated by floods. The MLA Deepak Kesarkar, a Shiv Sena rebel, said that the Bharatiya Janata Party BJP will decide on the Chief Ministerial candidate. Kesarkar told India Today that it is up to the BJP to decide on a CM candidate. It could be Devendra Fadnavis, as he has been a CM before. Uddhav Thackeray faction lost key votes as two NCP MLAs Chhagan Bhujbal and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar tested positive for COVID 19, while Anil Deshmukh and Nawab Malik are imprisoned and will not be able to vote.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP of spending crores to topple the Uddhav Thackeray government. She said by news agency PTI, The BJP is spending crores of rupees to topple the government in Maharashtra. Where do they get so much money to topple an elected government of a state? Has the BJP bulldoze everything in the country? Since February of this year, the Maharashtra Assembly has had no speaker since Nana Patole resigned to take over as Congress chief and Deputy Speaker Zirwal belongs to the NCP.