Shiv Sena disqualification hearing takes a dramatic twist

The ongoing Shiv Sena vs. Shiv Sena disqualification hearing has taken an unexpected turn. Shiv Sena MLA and Speaker of the Assembly Rahul Narvekar has been facing tough questioning for the past few days. During this questioning, it was revealed that the Shiv Sena, under the leadership of Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray, had issued a whip to take the ruling party's MLAs out. As the investigation into MLA Dilip Lande of the Shinde group began, the lawyers of the Thackeray group submitted an attendance sheet. This attendance sheet is from the meeting held on June 21, 2022, at the Chief Minister's official residence, where a proposal was made to remove Eknath Shinde from the leadership position of the Shiv Sena. The proposal had the support of the Shiv Sena MLAs. Currently, 23 MLAs, including those from the Shinde group, are in support of this proposal. Therefore, there is a possibility that this attendance sheet could be a cause of concern for the Shinde group.

Uddhav Thackeray, through his group, has communicated with the Speaker of the Assembly via a letter outlining the events of June 21. According to the letter, Sunil Prabhu issued a whip for the Shiv Sena MLAs' meeting on that day, with a total of 23 MLAs in attendance. The meeting saw the introduction of a proposal to remove Eknath Shinde from his leadership position, a proposal that received approval from the attending MLAs. Notably, the present MLAs marked their attendance on the provided attendance sheet, adding a documented aspect to the proceedings.

During the crucial meeting that happened on Varsha in June 21, the following MLAs from the Thackeray group were present: Dilip Lande, Mangesh Kudalkar, Gulabrao Patil, Sanjay Rathod, Santosh Bangar, Dada Bhuse, Sada Sarvankar, Yogesh Kadam, Uday Samant, and Deepak Kesarkar. As the legal proceedings unfold, it appears that the lawyers representing the Thackeray group are strategically positioning themselves to challenge the Shinde group MLAs during cross-examination. This suggests that the cross-examination may focus on raising pertinent questions that could potentially create difficulties for the Shinde group and contribute to the unfolding complexity of the disqualification proceedings.