The Supreme Court wondered on Thursday as to how it can reinstate the Uddhav Thackeray government in Maharashtra when the chief minister had put in his papers even before facing the floor test, after the faction led by him pitched for setting aside the governor's June 2022 order to the CM to take a floor test. The Thackeray faction made vehement submissions before the court urging it to turn back the clock and restore the "status quo ante" (previously existing state of affairs) as it had done in 2016 when it reinstalled Nabam Tuki as the chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh. Senior lawyer Kapil Sibal, representing the Thackeray bloc, urged a five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud to rescind governor B S Koshyari's order for a floor test, a day after the apex court questioned his conduct in calling for a trust vote merely on the ground of differences between Shiv Sena MLAs. The bench took note of the submissions of senior advocate AM Singhvi, also ...
Rajya Sabha MP and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Tuesday said the time granted to him by the Speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly for submitting a clarification for his "chor-mandal" remark has been extended till March 20. Last week, Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar had said that he had accepted Raut's request for more time to submit a written clarification. Raut had been earlier asked to submit his reply by March 3. Asked about the extension, Raut told reporters, It is till March 20. Raut caused a furore last month when he dubbed the state 'Vidhimandal' (legislature) a "chor-mandal (council of thieves). Legislators of the ruling BJP and Shiv Sena submitted to the Speaker a notice for a breach of privilege motion against him.
Activists of the rival Shiv Sena factions clashed over taking control of a shakha' or local office of the party in Maharashtra's Thane city on late Monday night, prompting the police to intervene to bring order. Members of the Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and rival Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray (UBT) engaged in a scuffle over establishing control of the 'shakha' in the Shivai Nagar area of the city located adjoining Mumbai. The Vartak Nagar police, under whose jurisdiction the area falls, rushed to the spot on being alerted about the clash and dispersed the warring groups. The high-pitched political drama, which went on for about an hour, started when activists of the Shiv Sena allegedly put up banners and sought to take over the 'shaka' from the rival party faction headed by former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. A video purportedly showing the clash between the rival groups and the police dispersing them went viral on social media platforms. The police
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said only anger and desperation could be seen in Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray's speech during his rally in Ratnagiri and there was nothing new in it. In a rally held in Khed on Sunday, Thackeray targetted the Election Commission over allotting the party's name and symbol to the rebel faction and termed it a "slave" of people in power. The Sena leader claimed that it was Bal Thackeray who stood with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) when it was politically "untouchable", and dared the former ally to seek votes in Maharashtra only in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi without invoking the Thackeray senior. Talking to reporters in Bhiwandi on Sunday night, Fadnavis said, "Same words, same sentences, same taunts, nothing new was said at the meet. As 40 people left the party from under his (Uddhav's) nose, we could see anger and desperation in his speech. There was nothing more in his speech. It won't be proper to react t
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said the Election Commission has allotted the party's name and symbol to the rebel faction but the poll body can never take away the party from him. Addressing a rally for the first time after losing the party name and election symbol "bow and arrow" to the faction led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Thackeray said he has nothing to offer to his supporters. "I have come to seek your blessings and support," he said. In a big blow to Uddhav Thackeray, the Election Commission had last month allotted the name Shiv Sena' and its poll symbol to the group led by Shinde who has the support of most of the MLAs of Shiv Sena. Thackeray said he didn't accept the EC's decision. "If the Election Commission is not suffering from cataracts it should come and see the ground situation. The EC is a 'chuna lagav' commission and a slave of those in power. The principle based on which the EC took this decision is wrong,'' he said. Thackeray said the p
Legislators of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) on Thursday staged a protest in the Maharashtra legislature complex against the hike in cooking gas price and demanded its rollback. The cooking Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) price was on Wednesday was hiked by Rs 50 per cylinder. Members of the MVA, which comprises the Nationalist Congress Party, Congress and the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), stood on the stairs of the Vidhan Bhavan on Thursday and shouted slogans against the state Eknath Shinde-BJP government, accusing it of hurting the interests of the common man and farmers. Since the time this government has come to power, the common man's household budget has collapsed. The electricity connections of farmers are being cut, they claimed. The budget session of the state legislature is currently underway. Following the price hike, a 14.2-kg LPG cylinder in Delhi now costs Rs 1,103, up from Rs 1,053, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers. State-owned
A grand theme park and museum dedicated to Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar will come up in his native Bhagur village in Nashik district along with a circuit encompassing areas that are connected to his life, Maharashtra Tourism Minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha said on Sunday. He was speaking at an event in Bhagur to mark the death anniversary of Savarkar. "The life and thoughts of Veer Savarkar are an inspiration to all. The Maharashtra government is taking efforts to ensure the entire world knows about his life and works. We will build a grand theme park and museum of international standard dedicated to Veer Savarkar," Lodha said. The theme park will be managed by Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation and work on it will be completed quickly, the minister said. "We will create Veer Savarkar Tourism Circuit, which will cover Bhagur, Abhinav Bharat Mandir in Nashik, Savarkar Chair Centre at Pune, Fergusson College hostel, the Babarao Savarkar memorial in Sangli, ...
The ongoing high decibel political and legal battle between rival Shiv Sena groups is all set to resonate loudly in the Maharashtra legislature when it begins its Budget session on February 27. The Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, buoyed by an Election Commission (EC) ruling in its favour, and the Uddhav Thackeray faction are locked in a bitter feud to lay claim over the 56-year-old party and legacy of its founder Bal Thackeray. Going by the legislative majority, the EC last week allotted the Shiv Sena name and the 'bow and arrow' poll symbol to the Shinde group while recognising the split in the party, which was rocked by a rebellion in June last year. Moving swiftly after the EC ruling, the Shinde camp petitioned Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar and took control of the Shiv Sena legislature party office in the Vidhan Bhavan complex in south Mumbai. Similarly, the Shinde camp feels the whip it issues will be binding on legislators still loyal to Thackeray. Amid the Sh
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The top court is dealing with Maharashtra political crisis triggered due to rebellion in Shiv Sena. It will continue to hear the matter on February 28
The Supreme Court Wednesday refused to stay the Election Commission order recognising the Eknath Shinde-led bloc as the real Shiv Sena and issued a notice to the group headed by the Maharashtra chief minister on the plea of the rival Uddhav Thackeray camp challenging the poll panel's decision. A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud took note of the submissions of senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Thackeray, and sought response of the faction led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Shinde. The counsel for the Shinde faction told the bench, also comprising Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala, that it will not issue any whip or initiate process to disqualify the lawmakers of the Thackeray faction in the meantime. All right, issue notice. The counter affidavit will be filed within two weeks, the bench said. While issuing notice, the bench, however, refused to stay the decision of the poll panel acknowledging the Shinde faction as the real Shiv Sena, saying it cannot be
Union minister Anurag Thakur has said the Election Commission's decision to recognise the Eknath Shinde-led faction as the real Shiv Sena has made things "crystal clear" and former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray should now understand who actually has the support of party workers. He also taunted Thackeray saying what was the use of repenting over what has been lost. The rival factions led by Maharashtra CM Shinde and his predecessor Thackeray are locked in legal battles over the control of the Shiv Sena. When asked about it, Thakur told reporters in Indore late on Tuesday night that the Election Commission (EC) has given a very detailed decision in this matter. "Iske baad doodh ka doodh aur pani ka pani ho chuka hai (everything is crystal clear now)," the Union Information and Broadcasting Minister said. "Thackeray should now understand who has the number (support) of Shiv Sainiks, party's MLAs, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs. This number alone tells the entire story,"
Five days after the Election Commission accorded recognition to the breakaway Shiv Sena group, its leader and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde was anointed as the 'Mukhya Neta' (Chief Leader)
Speaking to ANI, Minister Uday Samant said, We agreed that CM Eknath Shinde will be our new Shivsena party chief. We will soon submit our letter to the Election Commission regarding this
'Room No. 128, Parliament House has been allotted to the Shiv Sena Parliamentary Party for the office of the Shiv Sena Parliamentary Party'
More than a dozen former corporators of the Uddhav Thackeray-led group camped outside the Shiv Sena office at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation headquarters here to thwart any attempt by the Eknath Shinde-led faction to take control of it. After the former corporators sat outside the office located on the ground floor of the BMC headquarters on Monday, police security was stepped up to avoid any law and order issue, officials said on Tuesday. Notably, CM Shinde on Monday said no claim will be laid on any party property post the Election Commission's decision on the real Shiv Sena as "we are heirs of Balasaheb Thackeray's ideology and have no temptations". "The Election Commission took the decision on the Shiv Sena name and bow and arrow symbol as per rules, and the office in the 'vidhimandal' (Legislature complex) is of the Shiv Sena. As far as property is concerned, we have no temptations," he had said. Those who were tempted by property and wealth took the wrong step in 2019
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde will on Tuesday hold the national executive meeting of the Shiv Sena, days after the Election Commission recognised his faction as the real Shiv Sena and ordered allocation of the 'bow and arrow' poll symbol to it. The meeting will be attended by MLAs, MPs and other Shiv Sena leaders who have been working with Shinde since he broke away from the party led by Uddhav Thackeray, a close aide of the CM said. This would be the first party-level meeting to be chaired by CM Shinde, after the Election Commission's decision that the name Shiv Sena and its poll symbol will remain with the Shinde camp, he said. "Some decisions could be expected such as appointment of the new executive committee, he added. Shinde on Monday said no claim will be laid on any party property post the Election Commission decision on the real Shiv Sena as "we are heirs of Balasaheb Thackeray's ideology and have no temptations". "I have no greed for property or funds of the S
Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar on Monday said people of Maharashtra have not liked the Election Commission's decision to recognise the faction led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde as the real Shiv Sena. On February 17, the EC had allotted the 'Shiv Sena' name and bow and arrow symbol to the Shinde faction, in the process delivering a blow to Uddhav Thackeray whose father Bal Thackeray had founded the outfit in 1966. Campaigning for the Kasba Assembly bypoll scheduled for February 26, Pawar said people have the opportunity to show their displeasure at the EC by voting for the Maha Vikas Aghadi candidate Ravindra Dhangekar. "The decision given by EC was not liked by the people of Maharashtra and the voters of Shiv Sena, The voters have got an opportunity to express their displeasure through this bypoll. This displeasure will be seen in the results," he said.
The Uddhav Thackeray faction on Monday approached the Supreme Court challenging the decision of the Election Commission recognising the Eknath Shinde-led bloc as the real Shiv Sena and allotting the 'bow and arrow' poll symbol to it. Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi mentioned the matter before a bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud for an early listing of the petition. The CJI, however, refused to pass any order. "The rule applies equally to all, whether left, right or centre. Come tomorrow through proper process," the bench said. The plea filed by the Thackeray faction stated the points raised in the petition have a direct bearing on the issues which are being considered by the Constitution bench. The petition contended the poll panel erred in holding that disqualification under the Tenth Schedule and proceedings under the Symbols Order operate in different spheres and that disqualification of MLAs is not based on cessation of membership of a political party. It al
Shiv Sena-UBT President and former Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray said the party name-symbol verdict of Election Commission was "unacceptable" and demanded that the poll panel must be "disbanded"