Editor's Pick: SC gives Maharashtra Speaker deadline for defection pleas

The Supreme Court on Monday directed Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar to decide disqualification petitions filed under the Tenth Schedule (anti-defection law) of the Constitution against the Eknath Shinde camp in the Shiv Sena dispute by December 31. A three-judge Bench led by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud ordered the Speaker, in his capacity as a tribunal under the Tenth Schedule, to decide the disqualification petitions against the breakaway faction headed by Deputy CM Ajit Pawar in the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) dispute by January 31, 2024. The Chief Justice said the need to bind the Speaker to deadlines had come after giving him repeated opportunities to conclude the disqualification proceedings. The court took matters into its hands after the Secretary, Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Secretariat, filed an affidavit that the Speaker could only decide by February 29, 2024. “We do not want this to creep into the next election schedule… The proceedings cannot wrangle on until the next elections are announced. This has to come to an end within a fixed date,” Chief Justice Chandrachud responded firmly to the affidavit. He noted that a Constitution Bench had directed the Speaker in May to conclude and pronounce the final orders in the Shiv Sena case. There are 34 disqualification petitions pending before the Speaker in the Shiv Sena case and nine in the NCP matter. Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta urged the court to give the Speaker time till January 31, 2024, taking into account the intervening Deepavali holidays and the Assembly’s shift to Nagpur for the 15-day Winter Session in December. Senior advocates Kapil Sibal and A.M. Singhvi, appearing for the Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar loyalist camps, however, said any ambiguity in the deadline or any further delay would “subvert the anti-defection proceedings”. Chief Justice Chandrachud made it clear in the order that “procedural wranglings” should not delay the Tenth Schedule hearings in both cases. The Hindu’s Editorials Lost voice: On India’s abstention on the Gaza vote at the UN Terror in bags: On the blasts in Kerala The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Which former US vice-president has dropped out of the Presidential race for 2024? Dick Cheney Mitt Romney Mike Pence Mitch McCarthy To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 31 October 2023 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( SC gives Maharashtra Speaker deadline for defection pleas The Supreme Court on Monday directed Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar to decide disqualification petitions filed[ under the Tenth Schedule (anti-defection law)]( the Constitution [against the Eknath Shinde camp in the Shiv Sena dispute by December 31](. A three-judge Bench led by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud ordered the Speaker, in his capacity as a tribunal under the Tenth Schedule, to decide the disqualification petitions against the breakaway faction headed by Deputy CM Ajit Pawar in the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) dispute by January 31, 2024. The Chief Justice said the need to bind the Speaker to deadlines had come after giving him repeated opportunities[to conclude the disqualification proceedings](. The court took matters into its hands after the Secretary, Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Secretariat, filed an affidavit that the Speaker could only decide by February 29, 2024. “We do not want this to creep into the next election schedule… The proceedings cannot wrangle on until the next elections are announced. This has to come to an end within a fixed date,” Chief Justice Chandrachud responded firmly to the affidavit. He noted that a [Constitution Bench had directed the Speaker in May to conclude and pronounce the final orders in the Shiv Sena case.]( There are 34 disqualification petitions pending before the Speaker in the Shiv Sena case and [nine in the NCP matter](. Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta urged the court to give the Speaker time till January 31, 2024, taking into account the intervening Deepavali holidays and the Assembly’s shift to Nagpur for the 15-day Winter Session in December. Senior advocates Kapil Sibal and A.M. Singhvi, appearing for the Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar loyalist camps, however, said any ambiguity in the deadline or any further delay would “subvert the anti-defection proceedings”. Chief Justice Chandrachud made it clear in the order that “procedural wranglings” should not delay the Tenth Schedule hearings in both cases. 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