The Supreme Court on Wednesday scheduled November 12 for hearing the plea filed by the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction of the Shiv Sena challenging the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker’s decision to allot the party’s iconic ‘bow and arrow’ symbol to the rival faction led by Eknath Shinde.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi said the hearing will begin on November 12 and, if necessary, continue the following day.
“We will hear all the parties on November 12 and if need arises, we can continue the hearing on November 13,” the bench stated.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Shiv Sena (UBT), urged the court to take up the matter for final hearing before the upcoming local body elections, likely to be held in January next year. He stressed the urgency of resolving the dispute to avoid confusion during the polls.
Senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi and Neeraj Kishan Kaul appeared for the Shinde faction.
On July 14, the apex court had fixed the matter for final hearing, observing that the dispute had been pending for a considerable time and that the uncertainty could not continue indefinitely.
The Uddhav Thackeray faction has challenged Speaker Rahul Narwekar’s January 2024 ruling, which rejected its plea to disqualify 16 MLAs of the ruling camp, including Shinde, and handed over the party symbol to the Shinde faction.
The Uddhav camp contends that the Speaker’s 2023 decision to recognise the Shinde faction as the real Shiv Sena, based on legislative majority, was contrary to a Constitution Bench verdict.
In its plea, the faction described the Speaker’s orders as “patently unlawful and perverse,” alleging that instead of penalising defection, the decision rewarded the defectors by declaring them the real party.
The Speaker held that the majority of legislators represented the will of the Shiv Sena and declined to disqualify any MLAs from either camp.
The Speaker’s ruling consolidated Shinde’s position as chief minister, 18 months after he led a rebellion against Thackeray. The decision also strengthened his faction within the ruling coalition with the BJP and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.
In the Lok Sabha elections, the Shinde faction secured seven seats. In the Maharashtra Assembly polls, the Shinde-led Shiv Sena won 57 seats, the BJP 132, and the NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) 41.
In December 2024, Devendra Fadnavis returned as Maharashtra’s chief minister, with Shinde and Pawar as deputy chief ministers.
