The New Indian Express ·
SC resumes final hearing on Shiv Sena split case; Shinde faction defends EC's organisational majority test
The Supreme Court on Tuesday resumed final hearing on pleas challenging the Maharashtra Speaker's refusal to disqualify MLAs of the Eknath Shinde-led camp of the Shiv Sena, with the faction defending the Election Commission's decision to recognise it as the "real" Shiv Sena.
The bench is also hearing a challenge by the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction to the Election Commission's February 17, 2023, order allotting the Shiv Sena name and its 'bow-and-arrow' election symbol to the Shinde camp.
Senior advocate Neeraj Kishan Kaul, appearing for the Shinde-led faction, said the Election Commission was within its jurisdiction under Article 324 of the Constitution to examine the democratic character of a political party's constitution and organisational structure while determining which faction represented the real party.
