Why Maharashtra Speaker's Decision To Not Disqualify Uddhav MLAs Is A Big Blow To Sena UBT Faction

In a significant political triumph for Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar held yesterday that the Shiv Sena faction under his leadership was deemed the 'authentic political party' when rival groups emerged in June 2022. The ruling further clarified that no MLA from either of the two factions would be disqualified, marking a pivotal development in the ongoing legacy battle within the Shiv Sena.

Maharashtra Speaker Rahul Narwekar clarified today why he chose not to disqualify members of the Uddhav Thackeray camp, addressing a question posed by the Shiv Sena UBT chief. Although he deemed Bharat Gogawale's appointment as whip as 'appropriate', he expressed uncertainty about the proper service of the whip to attend the party meeting to Thackeray faction MLAs. Narwekar explained that the service of the whip was incomplete, lacking evidence to demonstrate that the whip was adequately served to the MLAs of the Thackeray faction. Therefore, he deemed it inappropriate to declare them disqualified.

However, the verdict is in no way as per the expectations of the Sena-UBT. Uddhav Thackeray faction was expecting either of the two verdicts - disqualification of Shinde faction MLAs or disqualification of MLAs supporting Uddhav. While disqualification of Shinde faction MLAs would have given a moral high ground to the Uddhav faction, disqualification of Sena-UBT MLAs would have given a full-throttle poll plank to Uddhav Thackeray ahead of the crucial Lok Sabha Election 2024 and the upcoming assembly election in the state. The Sena-UBT would have taken the issue to the masses citing disqualification and the sympathy factor may have created a narrative against the ruling parties. 

However, by not taking adverse action against any of the factions, Speaker Narwekar ensured that not only CM Shinde will complete his remaining term but also made it clear that Sena-UBT is deprived of any political weapon ahead of the polls. While Uddhav Sena may go to the Supreme Court against the decision, the Shinde Sena has enough reason to claim that it's the real Sena as it also has the 'Bow and Arrow' party symbol. While it may be a long legal fight for the Uddhav faction, the party does not appear to have been making poll gains with these issues.