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Last week, Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar’s ruling that the Eknath Shinde-led faction of the Shiv Sena was the “real political party”, marked a significant victory for the three-party coalition government in the state.
However, the coalition consisting of the BJP led by Devendra Fadnavis, the Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde, and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) led by Ajit Pawar is not in a celebratory mode yet.
The assembly Speaker’s decision on the disqualification of Shiv Sena MLAs was anticipated. If Shinde had been disqualified, it would have led to the collapse of the government and the dissolution of the alliance.
Following the decision, Shinde and his supporters were naturally seen celebrating, but the BJP and Ajit Pawar remained completely silent. In February 2023, after the Election Commission’s decision to allocate Shiv Sena’s name and symbol to Shinde, BJP leaders, including Amit Shah, mocked Uddhav Thackeray. However, this time only Devendra Fadnavis posted on X (formerly Twitter), and that too hours after the decision.
There was speculation in political circles that Rahul Narvekar would decide against Uddhav Thackeray. Ironically, all the characters involved in this disqualification case, including Eknath Shinde, his MLAs, and Rahul Narvekar himself, were once associated with Uddhav Thackeray. Narvekar was in Shiv Sena until 2013 and was considered close to Aditya Thackeray.
The Speaker also held that the Shiv Sena ‘pramukh’ (chief) did not have the power to remove any leader from the party.
BUT, WHY?
One reason for the coalition government not celebrating is that in the coming days, the Election Commission and Maharashtra Assembly Speaker are going to make a decision in the conflict between Sharad Pawar and Ajit Pawar.
The coalition government doesn’t want the 84-year-old Sharad Pawar to gain any sympathy or for the Delhi versus Maharashtra sentiment to receive a boost.
Even though it is speculated that the decision is going to be in Ajit Pawar’s favour, the Maharashtra government doesn’t want the opposition in the state to garner voters’ sympathy. However, controlling such statements during the election atmosphere remains a concern.
MAHARASHTRA POLITICAL CRISIS
In June 2022, Shinde, along with over 40 Shiv Sena MLAs, rebelled against then CM Uddhav Thackeray and brought down the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, which included the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Congress.
Shinde then joined hands with the BJP and became the new chief minister, with Devendra Fadnavis as his deputy.
Cross-petitions were filed by the Shinde and Thackeray factions before the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker seeking action against each other under anti-defection laws. The Supreme Court in May 2023 directed Speaker Rahul Narwekar to take a judgement on the pleas.
After the decision in Shinde’s favor, the Sena faction led by Uddhav Thackeray moved the Supreme Court against the order and has sought a provisional stay on the Speaker’s order.
