The Supreme Court on Monday directed Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar to decide by December 31 the disqualification petitions filed in the aftermath of the rebellion in the Shiv Sena camp, last year.
A three-judge bench, presided by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, refused to grant more time to the Speaker, who had filed an affidavit, seeking time till February 29, 2024, to complete the hearings.
The bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said, “We have repeatedly furnished opportunities to the Speaker and the tribunal, which is to conclude the proceedings under the 10th Schedule expeditiously,” Live Law reported.
Petitions filed by Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party are to be settled by January 31, the court added, noting these had to be settled now with the 2024 Lok Sabha election months away.
These petitions have been pending since last year’s political crisis when Sena lawmakers led by Eknath Shinde defected to the BJP and brought down the Uddhav Thackeray government.
Though Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Speaker, sought time till January 31 to decide the Shiv Sena petitions, the top court did not agree. Justice Chandrachud on Monday called attention to the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution (which is meant to prevent defections) and said, “We are concerned… the sanctity of the Tenth Schedule must be maintained. Otherwise, we are throwing these provisions to the wind.”
“Procedural wrangling cannot delay petitions. We direct proceedings be concluded, and directions passed, by December 31,” the bench, also consisting Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said, Live Law reported.
Two weeks ago, the court had given Rahul Narwekar a final opportunity to give it a more realistic timeframe to decide on these petitions, warning the Speaker (yet again) that it had to be done expeditiously. This was after a September 18 order directing Narwekar to submit a timeline.