A week after Ajit Pawar led a split in the NCP and joined the Eknath Shinde-BJP government in Maharashtra, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said he is waiting to see how the BJP handles its new "riff-raffs".
On the issue of petitions seeking disqualification of 16 Shiv Sena MLAs, including Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Thackeray said the state Assembly Speaker will have to take a decision on it within a given framework.
"If the Speaker to bypass it, the Supreme Court's doors are always open for us,” he told reporters in Nagpur after starting a two-day tour of the Vidarbha region in Maharashtra.
The Uddhav Thackeray-headed Maha Vikas Aghadi government collapsed in June last year after a revolt led by Eknath Shinde against the Shiv Sena leadership. Shinde later became the CM with BJP's support.
On July 2 this year, NCP's Ajit Pawar led a split in his party and joined the Shinde government as deputy chief minister. Eight other NCP MLAs also took oath as state cabinet ministers.
Asked about his views on the ruling BJP, Thackeray said, “I do not think the BJP deserves anything to be said about it. It has no right to preach us. I am just waiting to see how the BJP handles the new riff-raffs.” Notably, Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar on Saturday said notices have been issued to 40 MLAs of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and 14 of the Uddhav Thackeray faction including his son Aaditya Thackeray, seeking their replies on disqualification petitions against them.
These legislators have been given seven days to file their reply, he said.
Narwekar on Friday said he has received a copy of the Shiv Sena's constitution from the Election Commission of India, and that hearing on the disqualification petitions against 16 Shiv Sena MLAs, including CM Shinde, would start soon.
Commenting on the pleas seeking disqualification of the 16 Shiv Sena MLAs, Thackeray said the Supreme Court has already given a framework to the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker.
"The Speaker will have to take a decision on the disqualification issue within the given framework. If he tries to bypass it, the Supreme Court's doors are always open for us,” the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader said.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) recently approached the Supreme Court seeking a direction to the Assembly Speaker to hear the disqualification petitions expeditiously.
On May 11, the top court ruled that Eknath Shinde will continue to be the chief minister of Maharashtra. It cannot reinstate the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition government headed by Uddhav Thackeray as the Sena leader chose to resign without facing a floor test in the wake of Shinde's rebellion, the court said.
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