Maharashtra Twist: SC to hear Sena-NCP-Cong petition against Fadnavis government today

Mumbai, Nov 23: The Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Congress moved the Supreme Court seeking quashing of the Maharashtra governor's decision to swear-in BJP's Devendra Fadnavis as chief minister and demanded an immediate floor test to avoid "further horse trading".

A bench of justices N V Ramana, Ashok Bhushan and Sanjiv Khanna will hear the plea on Sunday at 11:30 am.

"There is nothing in public domain as to how and in what manner Shri Devendra Fadnavis and/or the BJP had staked claim power between the intervening night of 22.11.2019 and 23.11.2019,"the Shiv Sena's petition stated.

"Further there is no material in the public domain to show that Shri Devendra Fadnavis had carried letters of support of 144 MLA's (which in any event was not legally possible to do). The Petitioners categorically assert that all the MLA's of the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress are completely and solidly with the alliance except for Shri Ajit Pawar," the petition said.

"It is submitted that the Hon'ble Governor has acted in a partisan manner and has made a mockery of the high office of the Governor. It is respectfully submitted that the Governor's actions between the intervening night of 22.11.2019 and 23.11.2019 culminating to the swearing in on the 23.11.2019 are a text book example of the Governor acting at the behest of a political party in power at the Centre," it said.

"Issue appropriate directions in terms of summoning a special session of the Fourteenth Maharashtra Legislative Assembly with the only agenda of administering oath to the MLAs, immediately followed by the holding of a floor test on 24.11.2019," the petition added.

The Congress's Randeep Singh Surjewala in a press conference this evening said "23rd November will be a black chapter in the history of India when an illegitimate government was constituted by the Governor acting as a hitman on the Constitution of India at the instance of the Home Minister".

The BJP and NCP came together to form the government in Maharashtra, in one of the biggest twists in recent history. Devendra Fadnavis was sworn in as Chief Minister and Ajit Pawar his deputy.

Pawar after taking oath said since result day no party was able to form a government in the state. We decided to come together and form a stable government, Pawar also said.

Fadnavis said that the people had given us a clear mandate, but the Shiv Sena tried to ally with other parties. As a result of this President's rule was imposed in the state. Maharashtra needed a stable government and not an unstable one.