Mumbai, June 18 (SocialNews.XYZ) In a bid to avoid any legal complications, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena is proceeding cautiously over the possible defection of Members of Parliament from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT).
The caution stems from a key Supreme Court ruling in the Maharashtra political crisis, which held that while the original political party and its legislative or parliamentary wing are distinct entities, the role of the original political party becomes decisive in any merger process.
The legal precedent emerged from the rebellion led by Eknath Shinde in 2022, following which the Thackeray faction filed disqualification petitions before the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Speaker. The dispute eventually reached the Supreme Court, where a Constitution Bench headed by then Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud made several significant observations in its May 2023 verdict on the Shiv Sena split.
According to legal experts, including senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi and former Lok Sabha Secretary General PDT Achary, a breakaway group securing the support of two-thirds of lawmakers does not automatically receive protection from disqualification under the Tenth Schedule. If six or seven MPs from the Thackeray camp, which currently has nine Lok Sabha members, decide to leave, they cannot simply function as an independent bloc. To claim protection under the anti-defection law, they would have to merge with the Shinde-led Shiv Sena or another recognised political party.
The Constitution Bench clarified that a valid merger under the Anti-Defection Law requires two conditions. First, the original political party must decide to merge with another party. Second, that decision must be supported by at least two-thirds of the members of its legislative or parliamentary wing. Consequently, even if six of the nine Sena (UBT) MPs satisfy the numerical requirement, a split confined only to the parliamentary wing may not meet the legal threshold unless it reflects a corresponding shift within the organisational structure of the party.
This interpretation has made political parties wary of relying solely on legislative strength. Legal experts point out that without support from the original political organisation, a breakaway parliamentary group may struggle to establish a legally sustainable merger.
The significance of this position was reflected recently when 20 of the 28 Trinamool Congress MPs who rebelled chose to merge with a smaller regional party instead of functioning as an independent group. Despite the merger, the Trinamool Congress is understood to be preparing disqualification petitions against the rebel MPs.
Experts also note that merely skipping a party meeting outside Parliament does not ordinarily attract disqualification under the Tenth Schedule. However, violating a party whip or acting against the party line during House proceedings can trigger immediate disqualification proceedings. With these legal considerations in mind, the Shinde camp is carefully evaluating its options before making any move involving MPs from the Thackeray faction.
(Sanjay Jog can be contacted at sanjay.j @ians.in)
Source: IANS
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