Maharashtra: Breach of privilege motion notice against Sanjay Raut to be placed before RS chairman

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], May 17 (ANI): The matter of Eknath Shinde faction MLAs' breach of privilege motion notice against Sanjay Raut will be placed before the Rajya Sabha Chairman for due consideration, enquiry, action and decision.
The notice has been issued over Sanjay Raut's statement, "This is not Vidhan Mandal (Legislature) but Chor Mandal (House of Thieves)".
Earlier on Tuesday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde camp Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Shirsat proposed a breach of privilege motion against Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut to Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar.
Shirsat had alleged that Raut has been putting pressure on Legislative Assembly Speaker and calling the government "unconstitutional".
Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said that the Eknath Shinde government in Maharashtra "is illegal and formed against the Constitution".
"Supreme Court has said that the Shiv Sena Shinde group's Whip is illegal...The current government is illegal and formed against the Constitution," he said on Thursday.
Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar on Tuesday said that he will decide on the disqualification of 16 Shiv Sena MLAs of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's camp on the basis of law and no decision will be taken under pressure.
"I welcome the decision of the Supreme Court, which has given special powers to the Assembly Speaker while giving its verdict in the case of disqualification of 16 MLAs of Maharashtra government," Narwekar said.
He further said, "As far as decision-making is concerned, I will take this decision as soon as possible. But I will not be in a hurry to take this decision, if I take any decision in haste then it will not be correct."
Narwekar said that he would not take a decision under anyone's pressure.
"I will take as much time as it takes to take a decision, I will not take a decision under anyone's pressure. I will take a decision according to the law. It took more than 10 months for the court to take a decision," he said.
Last week, the Supreme Court held that former Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari was "not justified" to call for a floor test based on the request of the Eknath Shinde faction since he did not have enough objective material before him to conclude that the then Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had lost the confidence of the House.
A five-judge Constitution bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices MR Shah, Justice Krishna Murari, Justice Hima Kohli and PS Narasimha said it could not disqualify the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government and reinstate Uddhav Thackeray as Chief Minster because the latter had chosen to resign instead of facing a test of strength in the Assembly.
The Whip has to be appointed by a political party, the top court said. The apex court held that the Speaker's decision to appoint Bharat Gogawale (Eknath Shinde) as the whip of the Shiv Sena party was "illegal".
The apex court further said that the Speaker must decide on disqualification petitions within a reasonable time.
It also said that MLA has the right to participate in the proceedings of the House regardless of the pendency of any petitions for their disqualification.
In August last year, the top court's three-judge bench had referred to a five-judge Constitution bench the issues involved in the petition filed by rival groups of Shiv Sena in relation to the Maharashtra political crisis.
On June 29, 2022, the top court gave a go-ahead to the floor test in the Maharashtra Assembly on June 30. It had refused to stay the Maharashtra Governor's direction to the then Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to prove his majority support on the floor of the House on June 30.
After the apex court's order, Uddhav Thackeray announced his resignation as the Chief Minister and Eknath Shinde was later sworn in as the Chief Minister. (ANI)