Supreme Court pulls former Maharashtra Governor over floor test decision on Uddhav Thackeray vs Eknath Shinde case

The Supreme Court, a short while ago, held that though the then Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari did not act in accordance with the law by calling for a floor test in the Maharashtra Assembly in June 2022, it would not be able to reinstate the Uddhav Thackeray government, as he resigned without facing the test. The court also added that the Speaker must decide on disqualification petitions of 16 MLAs within a reasonable time. In its order, the Supreme Court said that the then Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari did not act in accordance with the law by calling for a floor test in the Assembly in June 2022. 

On the role of the then Governor of Maharashtra Bhagat Singh Koshyari, the Supreme Court said, the governor had no objective material in calling for a floor test. "If the Speaker and the government circumvent the no-confidence motion, the Governor will be justified in calling for a floor test without the aid and advise of the council of ministers...The assembly was not in session when the Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis wrote to the Government. The opposition parties did not issue any no-confidence motion. The Governor had no objective material to doubt the confidence of the Govt," he said. The bench added that a floor test cannot be used as a medium to resolve inter-party disputes or intra-party disputes. Even if it is assumed that the MLAs wanted to exit the govt, they constituted only a faction There is a marked difference between the party not supporting the government and the individuals not supporting it. Neither the Constitution nor the law empower the Governor to enter the political arena and play a role either in inter-party or intra-party disputes,' the bench said. 

For the unversed, Uddhav Thackeray had pleaded before the Supreme Court to step in after Shinde, backed by the opposition BJP, engineered a split into Shiv Sena and later formed a new government in Maharashtra with the support of majority MLAs. If Eknath Shinde is disqualified, he will have to resign as Maharashtra Chief Minister and his government will be disbanded. The bench then said that some of the issues involved in the Maharashtra political crisis may require a larger Constitution bench for consideration. There are various petitions pending before the apex court filed by both factions of Shiv Sena. On June 29, 2022, the top court gave a go-ahead to the floor test in the Maharashtra Assembly on June 30.It had refused to stay the Maharashtra Governor’s direction to the then Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to prove his majority support on the floor of the House on June 30. After the apex court’s order, Uddhav Thackeray announced his resignation as the Chief Minister and Eknath Shinde was later sworn in as the Chief Minister.