Uddhav Thackeray to face floor test tomorrow, Governor says session to be videographed
Mangalore Today News Network
Mumbai, June 29, 2022: Following an appeal by the BJP, Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari has issued directions to the crisis-hit Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government to prove its majority in the state assembly on Thursday (June 30).
Koshyari has convened a special session of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly tomorrow with the sole agenda being the trust vote against Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.
The trust vote proceedings in the Maharashtra assembly must be concluded by 5 pm tomorrow and the proceedings will be videographed, the Governor stated.
In his letter ordering the floor tests, Governor Koshyari said the present political scenario unfolding in Maharashtra “paints a very disturbing picture”. He cited reports that 39 MLAs have shown a desire to exit the MVA government, while seven independent MLAs have also sent an email withdrawing support.
“The Leader of Opposition personally visited me and I was briefed about the political situation in the state and thereafter, the LoP submitted a letter stating that the Chief Minister has lost the majority in the Vidhan Sabha. The letter submitted by the LoP has further requested for a floor test at the earliest to avoid any political bargaining by undemocratic means," Koshyari said.
Rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde, who is camping in Assam’s Guwahati with a troupe of dissident MLAs, said he will head to Mumbai tomorrow for the crucial floor test. He claims to have the support of 50 legislators.
“I will be in Mumbai tomorrow to participate in floor test in assembly. Prayed for Maharashtra and its people,” Shinde said after offering prayers at the famed Kamakhya temple.
The Shiv Sena is likely to move the Supreme Court after the Governor called for a floor test. A beleaguered Uddhav Thackeray is likely to seek legal opinion on whether the Governor can ask him to prove majority at a time when the top court is yet to decide on the process to disqualify 16 rebel MLAs. The next hearing in this case is on July 11.
On Tuesday, Maharashtra BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis met Governor Koshyari at the Raj Bhavan in Mumbai and submitted a letter to him, seeking a floor test in the assembly in view of the rebellion in the Shiv Sena, the lead party in the ruling alliance.
Meanwhile, Uddhav Thackeray made a last-ditch effort to mend fences with the rebel faction as he urged them to return to Mumbai and hold talks with him, saying it’s not "too late". He also said family members of some rebel MLAs camping in Guwahati are in touch with him.
Last week, Thackeray had made an emotional appeal, saying he was ready to step down if Shinde and MLAs who are supporting him declared that they don’t want him to continue as CM.
However, Shinde and his band of dissidents remained unmoved. They have demanded that the Shiv Sena walk out of the MVA coalition comprising the Congress and the NCP, and patch up with its estranged ally, the BJP.
Courtesy: India Today