The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to hold a floor-test on Wednesday after swearing on all MLAs by 5 pm and have the entire session video recorded.

The bench of Justices N. V. Ramana, Ashok Bhushan, Sanjiv Khanna said a pro tem Speaker would have to be appointed immediately to chair the floor test.

The floor test would be telecast live. No secret ballots would be allowed.

The following are the highlights of the Supreme Court's order issued on Tuesday:

• Maharashtra Governor to ensure that floor test be held on Wednesday, November 27.
• Pro ­tem Speaker shall be solely appointed for the aforesaid agenda immediately.
• All elected members shall take oath on November 27, which should be completed before 5 pm.
• Immediately thereafter, the pro­ tem Speaker shall conduct the floor test in order to ascertain whether Fadnavis has the majority, and these proceedings shall be conducted in accordance with law.
• Floor test will not be conducted by secret ballot.
• Proceedings have to be live telecast and appropriate arrangements are to be made to ensure the same.

The order was issued on a day that is celebrated as Constitution Day. It was November 26, 1949 when the Constituent Assembly of India adopted the Constitution of India. The constitution came into effect on 26 January 1950.

The SC observed that undemocratic and illegal practices within the political arena should be curtailed.

The apex court said that if the floor test was delayed there was a possibility of horse trading and it became incumbent upon the court to act to protect democratic values.

Before reading the judgment, which came 48 hours after the Supreme Court was approached to resolve the political crisis, the bench said the boundaries between judiciary and Parliament had been contested and that the Supreme Court had been called upon to uphold democratic values.

The Supreme Court allotted eight-weeks’ time to the Centre and others to file their replies on the plea of Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress combine against the decision of Maharashtra governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari to swear in Fadnavis as chief minister.

The Maha Vikas Aghadi claims it has the support of 162 MLAs with Shiv Sena accounting for 56, NCP 51, Congress 44 and others 9.

On Monday, the Supreme Court, while announcing its decision to pronounce a verdict on the Maharashtra controversy at 10.30am on Tuesday, appeared to indicate that it was in favour of a floor-test.

To many of those present in court, a comment by one of the judges, Justice Sanjiv Khanna, recalling past apex court directives mandating floor tests “within 24 or 48 hours”, appeared to indicate that the bench might order a trial of strength by Wednesday or Thursday.

The bench was hearing a petition of Maha Vikas Aghadi of the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress that wanted the court to declare the formation of the Devendra Fadnavis government as unconstitutional, or direct an immediate floor test.

Solicitor-general Tushar Mehta, as directed, placed before the court on Monday a copy of governor B.S. Koshyari’s letter inviting Fadnavis to form the government and another of the purported letter of support from 54 NCP legislators that party leader Ajit Pawar had produced.

Former attorney-general Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Fadnavis, said the chief minister was keen on a floor test but argued that the court could not set a date or a deadline.

“A floor test is imperative, but can the court say whether the floor test should be held not after 10 days but 5 days, not 5 days but 4 days, not 4 days but 3 days?” he said.

Mehta, representing the Centre and the state of Maharashtra, supported Rohatgi. “Can one party say, ‘We have somehow managed the flock together and if the floor test doesn’t take place in 24 hours, they’ll go away?’” he argued.

Horse talk

Equine and equestrian analogies abounded during Monday’s hearing, dragged in by references to “horse-trading”, a euphemism for the practice of inducing lawmakers to change sides through allurement.

“This is not a case of horse-trading but a case of one entire stable going the other way,” Mehta said, referring to how the entire Sena had broken away from the BJP, and the entire NCP legislature party purportedly ditched the Congress and the Sena.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the Sena, later retorted: “The jockey (Ajit) has run away but the horses are still here (that is, the NCP legislators are with party patriarch Sharad Pawar)”.

He said the Sena-NCP-Congress combine had the affidavits of 150-odd MLAs to prove its majority in the House of 288.

Ajit gambit

Senior advocate Maninder Singh, appearing for Ajit, said his client was the leader of the NCP and portrayed the political controversy as a mere “quarrel in the family” that “will be resolved soon”.

“I am the NCP. The letter I gave is factually correct. There is nothing to contradict the letter. I was authorised as a legislative party leader by 54 MLAs of my party to take a decision on their behalf on government formation, on the day I gave that letter,” he was quoted by PTI.