Narwekar to seek three more weeks to announce verdict in Shiv Sena battle

Assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar is expected to request an additional two-three weeks to announce his verdict on the MLA disqualification petitions filed by both factions of Shiv Sena due to the large volume of documents generated during the hearing.

With a little more than a fortnight left for the Supreme Court deadline, assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar is expected to seek an additional two-three weeks’ time to announce his verdict on the MLA disqualification petitions filed by both factions of Shiv Sena, people aware of the development said.

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The legislature has generated 2.67 lakh pages of documents, which include the 34 petitions from both camps, replies, more than 1,100 questions and their replies by the witnesses, in the course of the hearing that spanned 20 sessions with more than six hours each.

The speaker has, so far, completed examination and cross-examination and is likely to hear the oral arguments between December 18 and 20. After this, the study and revision of the documents will require more time, officials said.

Solicitor general Tushar Mehta is likely to make such a request, on behalf of the speaker, before the apex court which is expected to hear the matter on Friday.

“We have already apprised the top court of the time-bound hearing after its order to complete it by December 31. The proceedings were held even during the winter session of legislature and at times, at odd hours. The documents need to be transported back to Mumbai after the conclusion of the winter session and the oral arguments from both sides. The transition in police security and their review after it needs more time,” an official from the legislature, who refused to be named, said.

SC on October 30 asked the speaker to decide on the petitions filed by rival factions of Shiv Sena seeking disqualification of each other’s MLAs before December 31. After the order, Narwekar expedited the hearing and held sessions in Mumbai and Nagpur Vidhan Bhavans over the past six weeks. The speaker has divided the 34 petitions into six groups, including the issuance of the whip, election of the speaker, and floor test of the Eknath Shinde government.