New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday scheduled an August hearing for the plea filed by the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction challenging the Maharashtra assembly speaker’s decision to allot the "bow and arrow" party symbol to the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction.
A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi noted that the matter had been pending for a long time and emphasised that the uncertainty must not persist.
"We will be fixing the matter in August for final disposal of the main case," the bench told senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who appeared for the Uddhav faction.
Sibal urged the court for a swift resolution, citing the upcoming local body elections in Maharashtra. In response, senior advocate Neeraj Kishan Kaul, representing the Shinde faction, pointed out that the court had previously declined an urgent hearing on the issue.
Sibal argued that the speaker’s 2023 decision to award the symbol based on legislative majority contradicted a Constitution bench verdict of the apex court. Justice Kant remarked, "We will give the exact date of listing of the matter later, as we don't want to clash with other cases."
Earlier, on May 7, the top court had advised the Thackeray-led faction to focus on local body polls after it sought an urgent hearing on the symbol dispute. The court had then stated that the matter would be addressed post the summer break.
On January 10, 2024, Maharashtra legislative assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar rejected the Shiv Sena (UBT)’s plea to disqualify 16 MLAs from the ruling camp, including Shinde. The Thackeray faction challenged the speaker’s orders in the Supreme Court, calling them "patently unlawful and perverse" and alleging that instead of penalising defection, the decision rewarded defectors by recognising them as the legitimate political party.
The plea further claimed that the speaker erred in concluding that the majority of Shiv Sena legislators represented the true will of the party. In his ruling, the speaker did not disqualify any MLA from either faction.
This decision further solidified Shinde’s position as chief minister, 18 months after his rebellion against Thackeray, and bolstered his influence within the ruling coalition—comprising the BJP and the NCP (Ajit Pawar group)—ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha and state assembly elections.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the Shinde faction secured seven parliamentary seats, while it won 57 seats in the assembly elections. The BJP claimed 132 seats, and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP won 41. By December 2024, Devendra Fadnavis returned as Maharashtra’s chief minister, with Shinde and Pawar serving as deputy chief ministers.
(inputs from PTI)