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Maharashtra

Shinde Vs Thackeray: Thackeray faction seeks reference to 7-judge bench in SC

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 Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray faction on Tuesday asked the Supreme Court to refer the judgement in the Nabam Rebia case to a seven-judge bench of the apex court.

The judgment restricted the power of the Speaker to decide disqualification petitions if a resolution seeking his removal was pending.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the Thackeray faction, contended before a five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, that the court may refer the Nabam Rebia judgement (2016) to the seven-judge bench, “if we are able to persuade the court to do so”.

However, the bench — also comprising Justices M.R. Shah, Krishna Murari, Hima Kohli, and P.S. Narasimha — said this would be decided by the five-judge bench and arguments can be addressed regarding this. Senior advocate Neeraj Kishan Kaul assisted by advocate Abhikalp Pratap Singh, represented Eknath Shinde’s group, while Solicitor General Tushar Mehta represented the Governor to assist the court on question of law only. Mehta said he would like to submit a note as well.

Sibal said when the matter is taken up, he will be arguing on the reference to the 7-judge bench. The bench asked both sides to prepare a brief note on issues and submit it to the court. After hearing the brief arguments, the top court scheduled the matter for hearing on January 10.

In August this year, a three-judge bench of the apex court had said that a five-judge constitution bench will hear a batch of petitions filed by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Uddhav Thackeray factions on queries related to defection, merger and disqualification. A three-judge bench of the apex court, in its reference order, had framed first issue whether notice for removal of a Speaker restricts him from continuing with the disqualification proceedings under Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, as held by this court in Nebam Rabia (by a five-judge bench).

Thackeray suffered a major setback after Eknath Shinde and other MLAs rebelled against him and ousted him as the Maharashtra CM. They also laid claims to the Shiv Sena party and its symbol as well.

The top court restrained the Speaker from proceeding on disqualification petitions against Shinde and other MLAs and subsequently allowed a fresh vote of confidence in the Assembly, after which Thackeray resigned. The apex court, on July 11, asked the newly appointed Maharashtra Assembly Speaker not to go ahead with proceedings on the disqualification petitions.

Maharashtra

Maharashtra Legislature Monsoon Session Scheduled in Mumbai from June 30 to July 18

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Mumbai, June 26, 2025 — The Maharashtra Legislative Assembly and Council will hold their Monsoon session from June 30 to July 18, as announced at the meeting of the Legislative Work Advisory Committee. The session is set to take place at the Vidhana Bhavan in Mumbai.

The upcoming session is expected to see important discussions on various state issues, legislative amendments, and government policies. Leaders and members of the legislative assembly expressed their readiness to engage in deliberations aimed at addressing the concerns of citizens and advancing development initiatives.

The announcement has been welcomed by political parties across the spectrum, with expectations of productive debates and decision-making during this period. The committee emphasized the importance of the session in facilitating smooth governance and providing a platform for legislative deliberations.

Details regarding the agenda and schedule of the sessions will be shared soon, with the authorities urging all members to adhere to the protocols and ensure a collaborative environment throughout the period.

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Maharashtra

Maharashtra Govt Forms Committee To Review Shakti Criminal Law Bill Amid Centre’s Objections

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Mumbai: The state government has announced a committee under the Director General of Police (DGP) to review the Shakti Criminal Laws (Maharashtra Amendment) Bill pending in the state legislature.

The committee will compare the provisions made in the Bill with the new legal framework of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). The formation of the committee follows a statement made by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis a few months ago.

The statement came after objections raised by the Union Home Ministry over some provisions that were in conflict with a few judgments of the Supreme Court. The CM had said the state would review the Bill and reintroduce it, if required.

On Wednesday, the state government issued orders to form a six-member committee under the DGP, with the following members – Principal Secretary to the Law and Judiciary Department, Secretary of the Women and Child Development Department, Additional DG (Law and Order), Deputy Secretary in the Law Department and the Additional DG (prevention of crimes against Women and Children) as member secretary.

The committee will work on two points – a comparative study of the state bill with the BNS and BNSS – and will recommend if more specific legal provisions are needed compared to the Central Act. The report of the committee is expected in two months.

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Maharashtra

Will BMC Wake Up? Eastern Freeway Becomes Mumbai’s Most Dangerous Road At Night Due To Defunct Street Lights

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Mumbai: Motorists on the Eastern Freeway, which connects south Mumbai to Ghatkopar, are yet again suffering from blackouts as the street lights at several stretches of the road are defunct. The 16.8 km signal-free road connects south Mumbai from P D’mello Road to the Ghatkopar-Mankhurd link road and is preferred by lakhs of motorists to reach the eastern suburbs.

However, instead of providing basic facilities like street lights, the BMC departments concerned are busy passing the buck. “The speed limit is 80 kmph and the absence of streetlight makes the road very dangerous. Accidents can happen any time,” said Hemant Vichare, a daily user.

“It has been at least six months since the road lights have been non-functional, especially from the Wadala to Chembur section. I have never seen all the lights working in the tunnel as well. During the rains, the water accumulates on the roadside and without lights, it becomes very risky to drive,” said D Pinto, a daily user of the Freeway and resident of Chembur.

“The least BMC could have done is install working street lamps. Earlier, it was only the Wadala section that was dark; now even the flyover towards Ghatkopar (after Chembur exit) has gone dark. The freeway has heavy vehicular flow with cars running at high speeds. It is very unsafe,” said another commuter.

The flyover was built by the MMRDA and fully handed over to the BMC for operations and maintenance in 2015. When the FPJ contacted BMC’s Chief Engineer (Bridges), Uttam Shrote said that he reminds his staff regularly to follow up. “I am aware the lights at certain sections of the freeway are not working. The tender and quotations to install or repair lights is in process by the Mechanical & Electrical department.”

However, Chief Engineer (Mechanical & Electrical) Krishna Perekar said that his department has neither floated any tender nor is in the process of installing new lights or repairing he existing ones.

“It is not possible that stretches of freeway are without road lights. However, the lights are always purchased in bulk and not for a particular section in the city. The ward offices in the concerned stretch need to look at the issue. The BEST and Adani Electricity supply power to the road,” he said.

When contacted to the spokesperson of Adani Electricity, he said that there is no interruption of power supply in the area, including the freeway from their side.

Notably, this is not the first time that stretches of the Eastern Freeway have gone dark. In July 2023, the media had highlighted the issue of non-functional street lights on the eastern freeway and how it is fast emerging as the most dangerous road in Mumbai, especially at night, primarily because of gross laxity on the part of the civic body.

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