The Evening Wrap: SC urgently lists Uddhav Thackeray’s plea to stay EC order for Feb. 22

The Supreme Court on February 21 listed former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s petition challenging the decision of the Election Commission of India (ECI) to allot party name ‘Shiv Sena’ and symbol ‘bow and arrow’ to the Eknath Shinde faction for hearing at 3.30 p.m. on February 22. In an oral mentioning before a Bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) D.Y. Chandrachud, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Thackeray, sought a stay of the Election Commission order of February 17. Sibal said the rival faction was taking over the “bank accounts and properties”. Senior advocate A.M. Singhvi said the turn of events following the EC order is leading to a “piquant” situation. Shinde’s counsel, senior advocate Neeraj Kishan Kaul, appearing on caveat, said Thackeray had already raised these issues twice in the High Court. Chief Justice Chandrachud said the case would be listed on February 22 after the Constitution Bench hearing in the Shinde-Thackeray dispute concerning disqualification of the then “rebel” legislators who took over the government in Maharashtra with support from the BJP after Thackeray resigned as Chief Minister just ahead of a floor test. “We will post for tomorrow evening at 3.30 p.m. after the Constitution Bench hearing. We need some time to read the petition,” Chief Justice Chandrachud told Sibal and Singhvi. In his appeal, Thackeray, also represented by advocate Amit Anand Tiwari, said the Election Commission (EC) was “unfair”, “biased”. It had failed in its duties as a “neutral arbiter of disputes” under the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order of 1968. The EC order was based on proceedings under Paragraph 15 of the 1968 Order, which empowered it to identify the “recognised political party” from among rival factions or splinter groups. But Thackeray said the EC’s decision amounted to an interference with the party’s 2018 Constitution and results of the intra-party polls, following which Thackeray was made leader. The EC had refused to recognise the party Constitution as “sacrosanct”, even termed it an instrument of “fiefdom” and allowed Shinde to take over the leadership of the party. Thus, a constitutional authority has undermined the very principles of inner-party democracy, Thackeray argued. “The order of the ECI allows Shinde to take over the leadership of the party without duly contesting intra-party elections in accordance with the Party Constitution, and is against the principles of inner-party democracy,” the petition said. It said the EC ignored the fact that Thackeray “enjoyed the overwhelming support in the rank and file of the party”. He had the support of 160 members out of approximately 200-odd members in the Pratinidhi Sabha, which is the apex representative body representing the wishes of the primary members and other stakeholders of the party. In fact, Thackeray enjoyed a majority in the Legislative Council (12 out of 12) and the Rajya Sabha (3 out of 3). More damaging, Thackeray said, was the effect of the EC order in recognising and validating a “split” in a political party. This would only encourage legislators in the future to split from the original party without the fear of having to face disqualification proceedings under the Tenth Schedule. A “split” from the original political party without a subsequent merger with another party or formation of a new faction is no longer a defence against charges of defection. The Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment) Act, 2003 had deleted the provision of “split” in Paragraph 3 of the Tenth Schedule. The Thackeray faction argued that the Shinde camp’s refusal to comply with the party whip amounted to a “split” from the original Shiv Sena party. As a result, they had ceased to be party members and were liable to be disqualified as legislators for defection. The petition challenged EC’s finding that there was a “split” not only in the legislative wing of Shiv Sena but also in the political party. No such averments were made in the EC proceedings. The Thackeray camp also challenged the EC’s conclusion that the Shinde faction had the majority of legislators with it. They argued that many of these legislators constituting the “majority” were already facing disqualification proceedings. “There is a possibility of the alleged members losing their right of membership. The legislative majority alone is not a safe guide to determine as to who holds the majority for the purposes of adjudicating a petition under Paragraph 15 of the Symbols Order,” the petition said. NIA accuses Navlakha of links with ISI agent held in U.S., opposes bail plea Activist Gautam Navlakha, arrested in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, had connections with a Pakistani ISI agent arrested in the U.S., the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has told the Bombay High Court while opposing his bail application. The agency, in its affidavit filed in response to Navlakha’s plea, also claimed that he had “committed acts that had a direct impact on the national security, unity and sovereignty.” NIA lawyer Sandesh Patil on Monday informed a division bench of Justices A.S. Gadkari and P.D. Naik that it had filed its reply opposing Navlakha’s bail plea. The bench said it would hear arguments on the application on February 27. The NIA in its affidavit claimed that Navlakha had visited the United States thrice to speak at the Kashmiri American Council Conference organised by Ghulam Nabi Fai with whom Navlakha was in touch regularly. “Ghulam Nabi Fai was arrested by the (U.S. agency) FBI in July 2011 for accepting funds from the ISI and Pakistan government....Navlakha had written a letter to the judge of the U.S. court trying Ghulam Nabi Fai’s case for clemency,” the NIA said. “Gautam Navlakha was introduced to a Pakistani ISI General for his recruitment by Ghulam Nabi Fai on the direction of the ISI, showing his nexus and complicity with Ghulam Nabi Fai and Pakistani ISI,” the agency further claimed. Navlakha is presently under house arrest, instead of being in jail, as permitted by the Supreme Court on health grounds. The agency also stated that Navlakha has “deep links with CPI (Maoist) and he espouses Maoist ideology and anti-government utterances through his various lectures and videos.” The objective of these activities was to overthrow the government, it said. Navlakha was assigned tasks such as uniting intellectuals against government forces and recruitment of cadres for “guerrilla activities of CPI (Maoist)”, the NIA alleged. He was not merely supporting a banned terror organisation but “had an active role in furthering CPI (Maoist) activities,” it claimed. The Elgar case relates to alleged inflammatory speeches made at the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017, which the police claimed triggered violence the next day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial in Pune district. Police had also claimed the conclave was backed by Maoists. Later the probe in the case, where more than a dozen activists and academicians have been named as accused, was transferred to the NIA. Supreme Court proceedings to be transcribed live on experimental basis In a first, the Supreme Court started using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Natural Language Processing technology for live transcription of its hearings on an experimental basis from Tuesday. The live transcription has been launched in the court room of Chief Justice of India (CJI) D.Y. Chandrachud. The Constitution Bench proceedings will be transcribed from Tuesday and given to lawyers for vetting prior to uploading on the Supreme Court website. This will be on an experimental basis for a day or two to iron out creases in transcription before becoming a norm, the CJI said. “Do you see the screen? We’re just trying to explore the possibilities of live transcript. Then we will have a permanent record of arguments. Law colleges can analyse,” the bench headed by the CJI said as the Constitution Bench hearing commenced. The CJI headed Constitution Bench is hearing the case related to the 2022 power struggle in Maharashtra. Putin suspends Russian participation in nuclear pact with U.S. Russian President Vladimir Putin declared on February 21 that Moscow was suspending its participation in the New START treaty — the last remaining nuclear arms control pact with the United States — sharply upping the ante amid tensions with Washington over the fighting in Ukraine. Speaking in his state-of-the-nation address, Putin also said that Russia should stand ready to resume nuclear weapons tests if the U.S. does so, a move that would end a global ban on nuclear weapons tests in place since Cold War times. Explaining his decision to suspend Russia’s obligations under New START, Putin accused the U.S. and its NATO allies of openly declaring the goal of Russia’s defeat in Ukraine. “They want to inflict a strategic defeat on us and try to get to our nuclear facilities at the same time,” he said. Putin argued that while the U.S. has pushed for the resumption of inspections of Russian nuclear facilities under the treaty, NATO allies had helped Ukraine mount drone attacks on Russian air bases hosting nuclear-capable strategic bombers. “The drones used for it were equipped and modernised with NATO’s expert assistance,” Putin said. “And now they want to inspect our defence facilities? In the conditions of today’s confrontation, it sounds like sheer nonsense.” Putin emphasised that Russia is suspending its involvement in New START and not entirely withdrawing from the pact yet. The New START treaty, signed in 2010 by U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, limits each country to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers. The agreement envisages sweeping on-site inspections to verify compliance. Just days before the treaty was due to expire in February 2021, Russia and the United States agreed to extend it for another five years. Russia and the U.S. have suspended mutual inspections under New START since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, but Moscow last fall refused to allow their resumption, raising uncertainty about the pact’s future. Russia also indefinitely postponed a planned round of consultations under the treaty. In Brief: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with Singapore counterpart Lee Hsien Loong, on February 21 launched the cross-border connectivity of real-time digital payment systems via video conferencing. The easy linkage between India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Singapore’s PayNow will allow residents across the two regions to undertake faster and cost-efficient transfers. “This linkage will provide a low-cost real-time payment option to people from both countries and increase remittance. This will benefit students, professionals, NRIs, and their families the most,” Modi said. The linkage will permit residents to transfer funds from India to Singapore using mobile phone numbers, and vice versa, using the UPI virtual payment addresses. The Supreme Court agreed to hear on February 24 a plea by judges of the Patna High Court claiming that their General Provident Fund (GPF) accounts have been closed. The matter came before a Bench of Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justices Krishna Murari and P.S. Narasimha. A lawyer mentioned the matter before the Bench, saying GPF accounts of seven judges have been closed and sought early hearing in the matter. “What? GPF account stopped of judges? Who is the petitioner? List on Friday,” the CJI said. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 21 FEBRUARY 2023 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( Supreme Court urgently lists Uddhav Thackeray’s plea to stay EC order on Shiv Sena for February 22 The [Supreme Court on February 21 listed former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s petition]( challenging the decision of the Election Commission of India (ECI) to allot party name ‘Shiv Sena’ and symbol ‘bow and arrow’ to the Eknath Shinde faction for hearing at 3.30 p.m. on February 22. In an oral mentioning before a Bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) D.Y. Chandrachud, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Thackeray, sought a stay of the Election Commission order of February 17. Sibal said the rival faction was taking over the “bank accounts and properties”. Senior advocate A.M. Singhvi said the turn of events following the EC order is leading to a “piquant” situation. [Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray] Shinde’s counsel, senior advocate Neeraj Kishan Kaul, appearing on caveat, said Thackeray had already raised these issues twice in the High Court. Chief Justice Chandrachud said the case would be listed on February 22 after the Constitution Bench hearing in the Shinde-Thackeray dispute concerning disqualification of the then “rebel” legislators who took over the government in Maharashtra with support from the BJP after Thackeray resigned as Chief Minister just ahead of a floor test. “We will post for tomorrow evening at 3.30 p.m. after the Constitution Bench hearing. We need some time to read the petition,” Chief Justice Chandrachud told Sibal and Singhvi. In his appeal, Thackeray, also represented by advocate Amit Anand Tiwari, said the Election Commission (EC) was “unfair”, “biased”. It had failed in its duties as a “neutral arbiter of disputes” under the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order of 1968. The EC order was based on proceedings under Paragraph 15 of the 1968 Order, which empowered it to identify the “recognised political party” from among rival factions or splinter groups. But Thackeray said the EC’s decision amounted to an interference with the party’s 2018 Constitution and results of the intra-party polls, following which Thackeray was made leader. The EC had refused to recognise the party Constitution as “sacrosanct”, even termed it an instrument of “fiefdom” and allowed Shinde to take over the leadership of the party. Thus, a constitutional authority has undermined the very principles of inner-party democracy, Thackeray argued. “The order of the ECI allows Shinde to take over the leadership of the party without duly contesting intra-party elections in accordance with the Party Constitution, and is against the principles of inner-party democracy,” the petition said. It said the EC ignored the fact that Thackeray “enjoyed the overwhelming support in the rank and file of the party”. He had the support of 160 members out of approximately 200-odd members in the Pratinidhi Sabha, which is the apex representative body representing the wishes of the primary members and other stakeholders of the party. In fact, Thackeray enjoyed a majority in the Legislative Council (12 out of 12) and the Rajya Sabha (3 out of 3). More damaging, Thackeray said, was the effect of the EC order in recognising and validating a “split” in a political party. This would only encourage legislators in the future to split from the original party without the fear of having to face disqualification proceedings under the Tenth Schedule. A “split” from the original political party without a subsequent merger with another party or formation of a new faction is no longer a defence against charges of defection. The Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment) Act, 2003 had deleted the provision of “split” in Paragraph 3 of the Tenth Schedule. The Thackeray faction argued that the Shinde camp’s refusal to comply with the party whip amounted to a “split” from the original Shiv Sena party. As a result, they had ceased to be party members and were liable to be disqualified as legislators for defection. The petition challenged EC’s finding that there was a “split” not only in the legislative wing of Shiv Sena but also in the political party. No such averments were made in the EC proceedings. The Thackeray camp also challenged the EC’s conclusion that the Shinde faction had the majority of legislators with it. They argued that many of these legislators constituting the “majority” were already facing disqualification proceedings. “There is a possibility of the alleged members losing their right of membership. The legislative majority alone is not a safe guide to determine as to who holds the majority for the purposes of adjudicating a petition under Paragraph 15 of the Symbols Order,” the petition said. NIA accuses Navlakha of links with ISI agent held in U.S., opposes bail plea [Activist Gautam Navlakha, arrested in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case]( had connections with a Pakistani ISI agent arrested in the U.S., the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has told the Bombay High Court while opposing his bail application. The agency, in its affidavit filed in response to Navlakha’s plea, also claimed that he had “committed acts that had a direct impact on the national security, unity and sovereignty.” NIA lawyer Sandesh Patil on Monday informed a division bench of Justices A.S. Gadkari and P.D. Naik that it had filed its reply opposing Navlakha’s bail plea. The bench said it would hear arguments on the application on February 27. The NIA in its affidavit claimed that Navlakha had visited the United States thrice to speak at the Kashmiri American Council Conference organised by Ghulam Nabi Fai with whom Navlakha was in touch regularly. “Ghulam Nabi Fai was arrested by the (U.S. agency) FBI in July 2011 for accepting funds from the ISI and Pakistan government....Navlakha had written a letter to the judge of the U.S. court trying Ghulam Nabi Fai’s case for clemency,” the NIA said. “Gautam Navlakha was introduced to a Pakistani ISI General for his recruitment by Ghulam Nabi Fai on the direction of the ISI, showing his nexus and complicity with Ghulam Nabi Fai and Pakistani ISI,” the agency further claimed. Navlakha is presently under house arrest, instead of being in jail, as permitted by the Supreme Court on health grounds. The agency also stated that Navlakha has “deep links with CPI (Maoist) and he espouses Maoist ideology and anti-government utterances through his various lectures and videos.” The objective of these activities was to overthrow the government, it said. Navlakha was assigned tasks such as uniting intellectuals against government forces and recruitment of cadres for “guerrilla activities of CPI (Maoist)”, the NIA alleged. He was not merely supporting a banned terror organisation but “had an active role in furthering CPI (Maoist) activities,” it claimed. The Elgar case relates to alleged inflammatory speeches made at the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017, which the police claimed triggered violence the next day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial in Pune district. Police had also claimed the conclave was backed by Maoists. Later the probe in the case, where more than a dozen activists and academicians have been named as accused, was transferred to the NIA. Supreme Court proceedings to be transcribed live on experimental basis In a first, the [Supreme Court started using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Natural Language Processing technology]( for live transcription of its hearings on an experimental basis from Tuesday. The live transcription has been launched in the court room of Chief Justice of India (CJI) D.Y. Chandrachud. [A view of the Supreme Court of India in New Delhi.] The Constitution Bench proceedings will be transcribed from Tuesday and given to lawyers for vetting prior to uploading on the Supreme Court website. This will be on an experimental basis for a day or two to iron out creases in transcription before becoming a norm, the CJI said. “Do you see the screen? We’re just trying to explore the possibilities of live transcript. Then we will have a permanent record of arguments. Law colleges can analyse,” the bench headed by the CJI said as the Constitution Bench hearing commenced. The CJI headed Constitution Bench is hearing the case related to the 2022 power struggle in Maharashtra. Putin suspends Russian participation in nuclear pact with U.S. [Russian President Vladimir Putin declared on February 21 that Moscow was suspending its participation]( in the New START treaty — the last remaining nuclear arms control pact with the United States — sharply upping the ante amid tensions with Washington over the fighting in Ukraine. Speaking in his state-of-the-nation address, Putin also said that Russia should stand ready to resume nuclear weapons tests if the U.S. does so, a move that would end a global ban on nuclear weapons tests in place since Cold War times. Explaining his decision to suspend Russia’s obligations under New START, Putin accused the U.S. and its NATO allies of openly declaring the goal of Russia’s defeat in Ukraine. “They want to inflict a strategic defeat on us and try to get to our nuclear facilities at the same time,” he said. Putin argued that while the U.S. has pushed for the resumption of inspections of Russian nuclear facilities under the treaty, NATO allies had helped Ukraine mount drone attacks on Russian air bases hosting nuclear-capable strategic bombers. “The drones used for it were equipped and modernised with NATO’s expert assistance,” Putin said. “And now they want to inspect our defence facilities? In the conditions of today’s confrontation, it sounds like sheer nonsense.” Putin emphasised that Russia is suspending its involvement in New START and not entirely withdrawing from the pact yet. The New START treaty, signed in 2010 by U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, limits each country to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers. The agreement envisages sweeping on-site inspections to verify compliance. Just days before the treaty was due to expire in February 2021, Russia and the United States agreed to extend it for another five years. Russia and the U.S. have suspended mutual inspections under New START since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, but Moscow last fall refused to allow their resumption, raising uncertainty about the pact’s future. Russia also indefinitely postponed a planned round of consultations under the treaty. In Brief: [Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with Singapore counterpart Lee Hsien Loong]( on February 21 launched the cross-border connectivity of real-time digital payment systems via video conferencing. The easy linkage between India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Singapore’s PayNow will allow residents across the two regions to undertake faster and cost-efficient transfers. “This linkage will provide a low-cost real-time payment option to people from both countries and increase remittance. This will benefit students, professionals, NRIs, and their families the most,” Modi said. The linkage will permit residents to transfer funds from India to Singapore using mobile phone numbers, and vice versa, using the UPI virtual payment addresses. [The Supreme Court agreed to hear on February 24 a plea by judges of the Patna High Court]( claiming that their General Provident Fund (GPF) accounts have been closed. The matter came before a Bench of Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justices Krishna Murari and P.S. Narasimha. A lawyer mentioned the matter before the Bench, saying GPF accounts of seven judges have been closed and sought early hearing in the matter. “What? GPF account stopped of judges? Who is the petitioner? List on Friday,” the CJI said. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. First Day First Show Stay up-to-date on all things cinema with the "First Day First Show" cinema & entertainment newsletter. 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