Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on July 4 won the floor test in the State Assembly on the last day of the two-day special session of the House. In the 288-member House, 164 MLAs voted for the motion of confidence, while 99 voted against it. Three legislators abstained from voting, while Congress's Ashok Chavan and Vijay Wadettiwar were among those absent during the trust vote. Speaker Rahul Narvekar announced that the trust vote was carried by a majority vote. After the death of a Shiv Sena MLA recently, the current strength of the Assembly is reduced to 287, thus the majority mark is 144.
Amid the beginning of a legal battle between the two factions of the Shiv Sena — one led by former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and the other by rebel leader and new Chief Minister Eknath Shinde — both groups of the party violated the whips issued by the other group for the Speaker’s election in the Maharashtra Assembly. Rahul Narvekar from the BJP was elected Speaker on June 3 after he garnered 164 votes.
Why is defection a non-issue for voters?
Meanwhile, in a jolt to Uddhav Thackeray, the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker reinstated Mr. Shinde as Shiv Sena legislature party leader, removing Ajay Chaudhary. Mr. Narvekar also recognised the appointment of Bharat Gogawale from the Shinde camp as the chief whip of the Sena, removing Sunil Prabhu, who belongs to the Thackeray faction.
Shiv Sena | The Maratha tiger in its labyrinth
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On trolls over ‘I will return’ remark, Fadnavis says forgiveness is his revenge
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who faced trolling over his impassioned "I will return" assertion before the 2019 State Assembly polls, on Monday said he will avenge such trolls by forgiving them.
Mr. Fadnavis made the statement in the State Assembly after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde won the floor test in the House during the last day of the two-day special session of the Assembly.
Analysis | Bittersweet victory for Devendra Fadnavis
Before the Maharashtra Assembly elections in 2019, senior BJP leader and former CM Fadnavis said "Me punha yein" (I will return), which had evoked many social media memes.
After the polls, the Shiv Sena snapped ties with the BJP over the issue of sharing the chief ministerial post. The Sena had then tied up with the NCP and Congress to form government. - PTI
Not surprising to see BJP winning Assembly Speaker’s poll: Saamana
The Shiv Sena on Monday said it was not surprising to see the BJP winning the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker's election as the Sena was broken and "someone from the party" was pitted against it.
In satirical comments, an editorial in the Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' also said with the new government (led by CM Eknath Shinde) in the State, the issue of nomination of 12 MLCs from the governor's quota will be resolved soon. The old file (sent by the previous Uddhav Thackeray-led government) will be replaced with a new one and it will be cleared by the governor within 24 hours, it claimed.
If "protectors of the Constitution" take a dual stand, these people can make any resolution and win any election, it said, without taking any name. It said following the resignation of Uddhav Thackeray from the CM's post, there was no "state of law" left in Maharashtra. "Though this is a tough time, it too shall pass," the Marathi daily said. - PTI
Ajit Pawar to be the next new Leader of Opposition
- Mumbai Bureau
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde wins trust vote in Assembly
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday won the floor test in the State Assembly. In the 288-member House, 164 MLAs voted for the motion of confidence, while 99 voted against it.
Speaker Rahul Narvekar announced that the trust vote has been carried by a majority vote. After the death of a Shiv Sena MLA recently, the current strength of the Assembly is reduced to 287, thus the majority mark is 144.
Mr. Shinde was sworn in as CM on June 30, a day after Uddhav Thackeray quit the post. BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis was sworn in as the deputy CM. - PTI
Proceedings begin in Maharashtra Assembly
Trust vote proposed by BJP's Sudhir Mungantiwar and Shiv Sena's Bharat Gogawale. However, the opposition demanded a division of vote.
The Speaker allowed the demand and asked members to stand for headcount. - Mumbai Bureau
Thackeray faction moves SC against order of Speaker recognising new party whip
Uddhav Thackeray faction moves Supreme Court against order of new Maharashtra Speaker recognising new party whip of rebel Shiv Sena MLAs led by Chief Minister.
The top court will hear on July 11 fresh plea of the Uddhav faction against the Speaker’s decision on new party whip along with pending ones - PTI
Shinde moves petition to disqualify Sena MLAs
Legislative group leader Eknath Shinde and chief whip Bharat Gogawale after getting recognition from State legislative secretariat, moves petition to disqualify Sena MLAs, including Aaditya Thackeray for violating the whip.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena has maintained that the tenth schedule of the constitution gives no authority to the legislative secretariat to decide on the legislative party leader, but it is the authority of the party president. - Mumbai Bureau
Another Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Bangar joins Shinde camp
Ahead of the floor test of the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government on Monday, one more Shiv Sena MLA from the Uddhav Thackeray camp joined CM Shinde’s faction, taking its tally to 40.
The Shiv Sena currently has 55 MLAs in the 288-member State Assembly.
Santosh Bangar, the MLA from Kalamnuri in Hingoli district, on Monday morning switched over to the Shinde camp. - Mumbai Bureau
Shinde-led faction cannot claim to be original Shiv Sena: Sanjay Raut
Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Monday questioned the legitimacy of the faction led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and said the group cannot claim to be the original Sena.
Speaking to reporters in Delhi, Mr. Raut said these MLAs (of the Shinde group) should ask themselves some questions. They used the party symbol and all benefits that come along with it to win election, and then broke the same party.
"We will definitely contest it in court. The Shinde faction left the Shiv Sena, then how can they claim that their group is the original party, and not the one led by Uddhav Thackeray. The Thackeray name is synonymous with the Shiv Sena,” the Rajya Sabha member said. - PTI
The meaning of a ‘dynasty-mukt Bharat’
In the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s political strategy, opposition to dynastic politics has gradually moved from the periphery to the centre. This sharpened focus on a ‘dynasty-mukt (dynasty-free) Bharat’ was at the heart of the party line propounded at the BJP’s national executive meet in Hyderabad. Dynastic politics is becoming the meta narrative under which all the proclaimed ills of the opposition parties — corruption, misgovernance, secularism etc. — are sought to be encoded.
Maharashtra Speaker reinstates Eknath Shinde as Shiv Sena legislature party leader
In a jolt to Uddhav Thackeray ahead of the Eknath Shinde-led government’s floor test, Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar has reinstated Mr. Shinde as Shiv Sena legislature party leader, removing Ajay Chaudhary.
Mr. Narvekar also recognised the appointment of Bharat Gogawale from the Shinde camp as the chief whip of the Sena, removing Sunil Prabhu, who belongs to the Thackeray faction.
Not only me, but Sena’s Milind Narvekar had also met Fadnavis after he became DyCM: Dhananjay Munde
NCP leader and former Maharashtra minister Dhananjay Munde on Sunday said in the State Legislative Assembly that Milind Narvekar, a close confidante of Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray, had met BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis after the latter became deputy chief minister a few days back.
Mr. Munde had met Mr. Fadnavis after he was appointed chief minister Eknath Shinde’s deputy on Thursday.
Speaking in the House while congratulating the newly-appointed Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar, Mr. Munde inadvertently referred to him as Milind Narvekar, who is Shiv Sena secretary.
When it was pointed out to him, Mr. Munde requested that the remarks be expunged. - PTI
Shinde govt in Maha may collapse in next six months, be ready for mid-term polls: Pawar
NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday said that mid-term polls are likely in Maharashtra as the government led by rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde may fall in the next six months.
He made the statement while addressing NCP legislators and other leaders of the party in the evening.
“The newly-formed government in Maharashtra may fall in the next six months, hence all should be ready for mid-term polls,” an NCP leader, who attended the meeting, quoted Mr. Pawar as saying.
“Mr. Pawar said that many rebel legislators who are supporting Mr. Shinde are not happy with the current arrangement. Once the ministerial portfolios are distributed, their unrest will come out, which will ultimately result in the collapse of the government,” he said. - PTI
Environmentalists call for peaceful protest to save Aarey forest
“The Mumbai police have increased deployment at Aarey forest in light of the protest called by environmentalists against the State government’s decision to build a metro car shed at the site,” an official said on July 2.
“Environmental organisations have called for a peaceful protest at Aarey forest on Sunday morning and hundreds of Mumbaikars are likely to gather at the picnic point in the area,” he said.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his Deputy Devendra Fadnavis overturned the previous Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA government's decision to relocate the proposed Mumbai Metro Line-3 car shed from Aarey Colony.
Eknath Shinde government faces trust vote on July 4
Amid the beginning of a legal battle between the two factions of the Shiv Sena — one led by former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and the other by rebel leader and new Chief Minister Eknath Shinde — both groups of the party violated the whips issued by the other group for the Speaker’s election in the Maharashtra Assembly.
