Maharashtra’s Shiv Sena To Supreme Court - Majority Can’t Be Decided By Governor On His Own

Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena approached the Supreme Court challenging Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari's decision of not granting the political party more than 24 hours to demonstrate requisite majority to form government in the state.

Calling the governor's actions arbitrary, discriminatory and a violation of the fundamental right to equality, the party said the governor granted them half the time it had given the Bharatiya Janata Party - 48 hours.

The recent Maharashtra assembly elections resulted in a hung verdict with no single party crossing the halfway mark of 124 seats. The BJP emerged as single largest party with 105 elected members but strife with its pre-poll ally Shiv Sena, that won 56 seats, meant it could not form government.

The governor did nothing for 19 days after the election verdict, then on Nov. 9 granted the BJP 48 hours to demonstrate majority, the party noted in its writ petition filed with the Supreme Court. When, on Nov. 10, the BJP declined to form government, the governor gave Shiv Sena 24 hours.

On Nov. 11 the Shiv Sena MLA Aditya Thackeray said his party met the governor and staked claimed to form government but sought 48 hours time to give letters of support demonstrating that it has requisite majority. The governor, however, declined the extension and proceeded to invite the Nationalist Congress Party, with 54 seats, to form the government.

According to news tv channel NDTV, the NCP approached the governor this morning and sought an extension of the 7:30 pm deadline that was set for the Sharad Pawar-led party. The governor, however, declined the request and sent the recommendation for imposition of President's rule in the state. Alongside, just hours before Prime Minister Modi left for the BRICS meeting in Brazil, the union cabinet met and recommended President's rule. By evening of Nov. 12 President's rule had been imposed on the state.

Shiv Sena addresses the media on government formation as the Maharashtra political deadlock continues. #BQLive

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Shiv Sena's petition argued that the governor's role in such situations is to grant reasonable time to parties to form the government and cannot act as a facilitator or a stumbling block in the efforts of government formation.

The BJP, acting through the Hon'ble Governor, has penalised the petitioner for having severed ties with it by ensuring that the request for three days time is refused by the Hon'ble Governor.

Shiv Sena Writ Petition

The Shiv Sena questioned the impartiality of the governor, accusing him of acting at the behest of the central government. “The governor is duty bound to allow reasonable time for political parties to conclude their negotiation on government formation and not act as an agent/mouthpiece of the central government and/or the ruling party at the Centre,'' the petition filed by the party in the Supreme Court said.

The formation of state government after an election is not a race, Shiv Sena said.

Sena argued that it had the support of the NCP and Indian National Congress (44 seats) to form government, as well as support letters from eight independent members of the legislative assembly (MLAs). Despite this the governor chose to fast-forward the process, thereby depriving the party an opportunity to form the government.

It has sought the apex court's intervention to grant it more time to prove majority and form government. Majority cannot be decided by the governor on his own, the party said. The floor of the House is the only ‘constitutionally ordained forum' to the test majority, it asserted in its petition.

The Supreme Court, however, refused to accord an urgent hearing to the Shiv Sena. The court's registry informed the party that it was not possible to constitute a bench on Tuesday and asked the party's counsel to mention the matter for hearing on Wednesday before the court of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi.

The party is likely to file a second petition challenging the imposition of President's rule in the state, one of the lawyers representing the Shiv Sena told BloombergQuint.

Watch | Sharad-Pawar led NCP brief the media on Nov. 12 evening.

Watch | Aditya Thackeray of the Shiv Sena brief the media on Nov. 11 evening.

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