The Supreme Court today heard arguments by lawyers of Team Thackeray and Team Shinde
The two Shiv Sena factions led by Uddhav Thackeray and his BJP-backed successor Eknath Shinde today went all out in proving who controls the party, with both sides deploying a battery of top lawyers to argue their case before the Supreme Court.
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Team Thackeray accused the other group led by Mr Shinde of "floating a fake narrative to justify their anti-party stand". "All events that followed, including the floor test and the appointment of Shinde as Chief Minister, are fruit of a poisonous tree, the seeds of which were unashamedly sown in the Supreme Court by the delinquent MLAs," Team Thackeray said.
On a question by the Supreme Court on what if 2/3rds MLAs come out of the party, Team Thackeray said the laws in such circumstances require that Shiv Sena factions should be merged or the new group should form a political party.
"They (Team Shinde) have to register with the EC (Election Commission) if they form a new party, but no registration if they merge into another party. But issue is also of balance. 1/3rd are still remaining in the party. The 2/3rd cannot say that 'we are the party'," Team Thackeray said.
"They (rebel MLAs) were sitting in Guwahati (in Assam) and declaring themselves to be the political party. Their purpose is to legitimize defections. Every act that that they have committed is a violation of rules. The government made in Maharashtra is illegal, so all decisions taken by it will also be illegal. Hence, the urgency in the matter for a resolution," Team Thackeray said.
When Team Thackeray asked whether the anti-defection law is even applicable now or is it something that is just on paper, Team Shinde replied this law is not for a leader who has lost the confidence of his own party members and somehow wants to lock them in and hang on to power.
"...The Thackeray faction claims disqualification notices but nobody has been disqualified so far. Not attending a party meeting held outside the house is not ground for defection. Intra-party dissent is not ground for defection. We confuse political parties with leaders. So and so party is so and so leader," Team Shinde said.
"The (Thackeray) group has gone to EC (Election Commission) and said 'we are the political party'. Let us not mix EC proceedings with disqualification proceedings. Intra party rebellion within the party is different from a group of leaders leaving the party. This intra party issue is not a ground for defection. BMC (civic body) elections are round the corner, so we have to decide who is the party. The Uddhav Thackeray faction is linking things to EC proceedings unnecessarily," Team Shinde said.
"They want the Speaker to be stripped of all powers and want Supreme Court to become the defection tribunal. This is unprecedented. This is not where the trial is supposed to take place," the Chief Minister's faction said.
The Maharashtra Governor's representation said, "The questions which are involved would have a wide ranging impact on the body politic of this country. In a past judgement it has been made clear that once somebody goes before the electorate he or she does not go as an individual. You go as an ideology. After winning if you go and form an alliance of a different ideology then you cannot say that the members of the party cannot raise their voice against it."
Uddhav Thackeray stepped down as Maharashtra Chief Minister after nearly 40 Sena rebel MLAs led by Eknath Shinde revolted against him in June, and with the BJP's support formed government by dislodging the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance of the Sena, Congress and Nationalist Congress Party, or NCP.
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