MLAs disqualification row: SC to hear pleas of Uddhav, Sharad Pawar factions on Oct 30
Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on October 30 pleas filed by the Uddhav Thackeray faction of the Shiv Sena and the Sharad Pawar bloc of the NCP, seeking a direction to the Maharashtra assembly speaker to expeditiously decide disqualification petitions against some MLAs. A bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud is scheduled to take up two separate pleas filed by both the factions.
The Supreme Court is set to reopen after a week-long Dussehra holiday.
On October 17, the top court granted assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar a final opportunity to give it a realistic time-frame for deciding the cross-petitions filed by the rival factions of the Shiv Sena seeking disqualification of each other's MLAs following a split in the party.
«The narration of facts indicates that the first batch of petitions is pending since June and July 2022. The judgment of the Constitution Bench was delivered on May 11, 2023.
The disqualification petitions have to be adjudicated upon with all expeditions. Otherwise very purpose of the tenth schedule shall stand defeated,» the bench had said in its order.
Expressing dissatisfaction with the time schedule given by the Speaker, the top court had said, «The time schedule as proposed will not result in a foreseeable conclusion of the disqualification petitions at a reasonably early date.»
It had noted in its order a statement of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta that during the course of the Dussehra break, he will personally engage with the Speaker, so as to indicate a firm set of modalities to ensure the early conclusion of the hearing of the disqualification petitions.
«Before this court issues peremptory directions for compliance with a time schedule for disposal, we grant a final
