Read Time: 06 minutes

Synopsis

Supreme Court has granted an extension of 10 days to Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar in deciding the disqualification petitions filed by Uddhav Thackeray led faction of Shiv Sena.

Earlier, the bench of CJI DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra had directed the Speaker to decide the petitions by December 31, 2023.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta requested the bench for a three-week extension from December 31, 2023. 

CJI thought of it to be a reasonable extension. Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal expressed his reservations against the request saying, "This was requested earlier too, which this court declined, they had asked for Jan 21, 2024 to be the deadline..".

On the SG's submission that matter shall be closed by December 28, 2023, the bench went on to grant an extension.

Regarding the petitions filed by Sharad Pawar led Nationalist Congress Party faction, the Speaker was granted time till January 31, 2024 to decide them.

The court was also apprised today that a similar request could be made for the Pawar factions' petitions. 

Supreme Court had earlier given a 'last chance' to the Maharashtra Speaker to come up with a schedule to hear the disqualification petitions pending before him. Court was visibly irked with the Speaker giving interviews saying that court is a co-equal branch of the government and not doing his job.

On October 13, Supreme Court had asked the Speaker to hear the disqualification petitions pending before him on a day-to-day basis and decide them before the upcoming elections.

The Sharad Pawar led faction of the Nationalist Congress Party had also knocked on the Supreme Court's door, asking it to direct the Maharashtra Speaker to decide the disqualification petitions filed by it against the Ajit Pawar led faction.

In July, the Supreme Court had issued notice in the plea filed by Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena seeking a direction to the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker to decide the pending disqualification petitions against Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and other MLAs in a time bound manner, preferably within two weeks.

The plea claimed in the present case, the delinquent MLAs against whom disqualification petitions are pending have committed brazenly unconstitutional acts which per se invited disqualification under Paras 2(1)(a), 2(1)(b), and 2(2) of the Tenth Schedule. 

"Therefore, the Speaker’s inaction in deciding the disqualification proceedings is an act of grave constitutional impropriety as his inaction is allowing MLAs who are liable to be disqualified to continue in the assembly and to hold responsible positions in the government of Maharashtra including that of the Chief Minister," it said.

The Supreme Court, by its order on June 27, 2022, granted time to the petitioners therein (Eknath Shinde and Bharat Gogawale) and other similarly situated MLAs to file their replies by July, 2022. 

Case Title: Jayant Patil vs. Speaker, Maharashtra Legislative Assembly