Supreme court agrees with anti-BJP combine, Maharashtra floor test tomorrow

Mangalore Today News Network

Mumbai, Nov 26, 2019: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has to prove his majority "within 24 hours" or by tomorrow, the Supreme Court ruled today on a petition challenging the surprise government formation by the BJP on Saturday. The trust vote will be telecast live and will be presided over by a pro-tem or interim Speaker. The court also ordered that voting will not take place by secret ballot.

"In a situation wherein, if the floor test is delayed, there is a possibility of horse-trading, it becomes incumbent upon the Court to act to protect democratic values. An immediate floor test, in such a case, might be the most effective mechanism to do so," said the court as to NDTV.

 

The Supreme Court also ordered Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari to ensure that all newly elected MLAs are sworn in by 5 pm on Wednesday. The floor test will take place after that, said a three-judge bench.

The Shiv Sena-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)-Congress alliance had petitioned the Supreme Court against the manner in which Devendra Fadnavis took power, in a secretive oath ceremony on Saturday morning. The alliance had called for an immediate floor test.

The centre had argued that the Governor invited the BJP to form government based on a letter showing the support of 170 MLAs, including all 54 of the NCP of Ajit Pawar, who was sworn in as Deputy Chief Minister. The petition argued that Ajit Pawar had faked the NCP letter of support using signatures collected from MLAs for the Sena-NCP-Congress alliance. The alliance also submitted an affidavit claiming the support of 154 MLAs.

The role of the interim Speaker assumes much importance now.

By convention, the senior most member of the assembly is interim or pro-tem speaker. Among the 288 members elected in last month’s elections, Balasaheb Thorat is the only one serving his eighth term. Nationalist Congress Party’s Dilip Walse-Patil, Jayant Patil and Ajit Pawar, Congress’s KC Padvi, BJP’s Kalidas Kolambkar and Babanrao Pachpute are serving their seventh term and the Speaker of the previous Assembly and BJP leader Haribhau Bagde, NCP’s Chhagan Bhujbal and BJP’s Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil are serving their sixth term.