The Supreme Court issued a stern reprimand to the Maharashtra assembly speaker on Friday, expressing dissatisfaction with the prolonged delay in addressing the plea for the disqualification of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and several MLAs. The court emphasized that the speaker must not impede its orders.
Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, heading the bench, asserted that someone needed to counsel the Speaker on the imperative of adhering to the Supreme Court's directives. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta was instructed to inform the court about the expected timeline for reaching a decision, PTI reported.
Expressing visible frustration, Chief Justice Chandrachud emphasized the necessity of resolving the disqualification pleas before the upcoming assembly elections to prevent rendering the entire process futile. The bench conveyed that if unsatisfied with the Speaker's proposed timeline, it may direct a decision within two months.
"The writ of this court has to run when there is a decision contrary to the Constitution of India," remarked the bench, hinting at the potential consideration of the plea early next week. This development follows the Supreme Court's previous directive on September 18, instructing the Maharashtra assembly speaker to outline a specific timeline for the adjudication of disqualification petitions against Chief Minister Shinde and other MLAs.
In response to the situation, Sharad Pawar, the founder of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), expressed concerns about potential delay tactics employed by Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar in handling the disqualification petitions involving rebel MLAs. NCP and Shiv Sena (UBT) have jointly approached the Supreme Court to request time-bound directions to the Maharashtra Speaker for a timely decision on the disqualification matter. Pawar stressed that they fear the issue is being unnecessarily prolonged.
