Uddhav Faction Urges Supreme Court to Decide MLA Disqualification Before Finalizing Party Identity

The high-stakes legal battle regarding the true identity of the Shiv Sena and its iconic "bow and arrow" election symbol has intensified in the highest court of the country. During the recent proceedings, the Uddhav Thackeray faction put forth a compelling argument before the Supreme Court, emphasizing that determining the legitimate political party cannot bypass the pending disqualification issues involving rebel lawmakers.Disqualification of Rebel MLAs Must Come FirstRepresenting the Uddhav faction, senior advocate Kapil Sibal strongly urged a special bench of the apex court that a fair and impartial ruling on the disqualification petitions against the rebel MLAs must precede any final conclusion by the Election Commission regarding which faction constitutes the real political party.The faction contended that if the rebel MLAs are eventually found guilty of defection and disqualified under the law, their current numerical strength and legislative majority within the assembly should be entirely disregarded by authorities.Challenging the Legislature vs. Organization DynamicThe Uddhav camp raised serious concerns regarding the approach taken by the Election Commission and the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker, arguing that equating a temporary majority of elected members with the broader "political party" sets a legally flawed and dangerous precedent.Sibal highlighted that the number of rebel legislators initially stood at 16 before escalating due to whip violations and defiance. He also questioned the Assembly Speaker's decision to sideline the party's 2018 organizational constitution. The faction stressed that lakhs of grassroots party workers contested and won elections under the leadership of party chief Uddhav Thackeray, meaning a legislative rebellion by a faction cannot strip away the authority of the core party organization.