Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde convened a working committee meeting of the Shiv Sena on Tuesday, initiating the process of a complete takeover of the party, including access to party funds. During the meeting, the faction will also discuss the takeover of party offices apart from other strategies to take complete ownership of Shiv Sena. The faction already took control of the party’s office in the legislative building on Monday.
Further, the apex court will also hear on merits the batch of petitions related to the political fallout in Maharashtra due to the split in the Shiv Sena today.
Yesterday, when senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for the Thackeray camp, mentioned the matter before a bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud for an early listing of the petition, the CJI refused to pass any order and asked him to mention the matter “tomorrow”.
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 also submitted that the Election Commission has erred in holding that there was a split in the Shiv Sena.
Applying the ‘test of majority’ principle, the poll panel had on Friday recognised the Eknath Shinde-faction as the real Shiv Sena and ordered the allocation of the bow and arrow election symbol of the undivided party founded by the late Balasaheb Thackeray to it.
In a 78-page order on the protracted battle for control of the organisation, the Commission allowed the Uddhav Thackeray faction to keep the “flaming torch” poll symbol allotted to it till the completion of the assembly by-polls in the state.
The Commission said the MLAs backing Shinde got nearly 76 per cent of votes polled in favour of the 55 winning Shiv Sena candidates in the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly elections.
The MLAs in the Uddhav Thackeray camp got 23.5 per cent of the votes polled in favour of the winning Shiv Sena candidates, the three-member Commission said.
With inputs from News18
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