Supreme Court Extends Deadline For Verdict On Disqualification Petitions Against Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde

The Supreme Court has granted an extension until January 10 for Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar to deliver a verdict on disqualification petitions against several MLAs, including Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The apex court emphasized that the Maharashtra speaker must make the final decision on the pleas seeking disqualification within this extended timeframe.

Initially, the Supreme Court had instructed the Maharashtra assembly speaker to conclude the disqualification proceedings by December 31. However, Narwekar requested additional time to review the pending petitions. The Supreme Court bench, headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, maintained the necessity for the speaker's verdict by January 10, 2023.

CJI Chandrachud stated, "The speaker has indicated that the proceedings will be closed on December 20, and the speaker had sought a reasonable extension of time. Bearing in mind the time limit laid out earlier, we grant an extension of time till January 10, 2023, for the speaker to deliver judgment."

The petitions, seeking the disqualification of Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde and MLAs aligned with him, were filed by the Uddhav Thackeray faction of the Shiv Sena and the Sharad Pawar bloc of the NCP. The legal action stems from the rebellion of Eknath Shinde and other MLAs from the Uddhav Thackeray government, leading to their alliance with the BJP to form a new government in June 2022. This political maneuver prompted the resignation of former CM Uddhav Thackeray, resulting in a split within the Shiv Sena into two factions—one led by Thackeray and the other by Shinde.