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Maharashtra

Uddhav vs Shinde: SC allows EC to decide which faction is real Shiv Sena

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In a big setback to Uddhav Thackeray’s faction, the Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to stop the Election Commission from deciding the claim of Eknath Shinde group to be the real Shiv Sena.

After a day-long hearing, a constitution bench headed by Justice D.Y. Chandrachud dismissed the interlocutory application filed on behalf of Thackeray’s faction. The apex court’s decision is very significant in view of the impending Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections, where both Shinde and Thackeray factions would like to contest the poll.

The bench — also comprising Justices M.R. Shah, Krishna Murari, Hima Kohli, and P.S. Narasimha — said there would not be any stay on the proceedings before the Election Commission on intra party dispute and ‘bow and arrow’ symbol of the party. “We direct that there would be no stay of the proceedings before the Election Commission of India,” it said.

Senior advocates Kapil Sibal, A.M. Singhvi and Devadatt Kamat represented the Thackeray’s faction. Sibal submitted that Shinde cannot approach the EC once he has incurred disqualification, saying “I challenged the very locus of the person who moved the EC”.

Sibal clarified that Shinde has incurred disqualification as his various acts amounted to “voluntarily giving up membership of the party” under the Tenth Schedule, and he also violated the party whip, which is also covered by the Tenth Schedule.

The Thackeray camp vociferously argued that since disqualification of Shinde and the MLAs supporting him was pending, therefore EC cannot consider their application over the party and the symbol. However, the top court declined to entertain this contention.

Senior advocates Maninder Singh, Neeraj Kishan Kaul, and Mahesh Jethmalani, assisted by advocate Abhikalp Pratap Singh, argued for the Shinde faction.

Senior advocate Arvind Datar represented the Election Commission.

Shinde’s faction counsel argued that under Article 324 of the Constitution, the EC possesses plenty of powers to deal with any situation which arises in relation to political parties and several party members have sent their representations to the EC supporting the Shinde group.

Kaul submitted that the nature of enquiry under Tenth Schedule and the Symbols Order are different.

Shinde’s faction counsel claimed a hopeless minority sought to remove him from the party, and contended that the Speaker, under the Tenth Schedule, has to exercise power to determine disqualification of a member and he cannot decide on the split or merger within a political party. Shinde faction counsel vehemently argued that a party member’s right to move the EC cannot be taken away.

The EC counsel argued that it worked independently, and its functions are different when compared with the Speaker. The counsel added that it can decide who held the majority in the party.

Shinde and his faction had rebelled against Thackeray, which forced him to resign as Maharashtra Chief Minister.

Shiv Sena’s General Secretary Subhash Desai had moved the apex court saying that Shinde and other MLAs, have purportedly initiated proceedings under para 15 of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968 (Symbols Order) seeking to be recognised as the “real Shiv Sena” by the EC. Desai added that they are also claiming the right to use the election symbol of “bow and arrow” allotted to Shiv Sena.

Thackeray faction claimed that since the disqualification matter is pending in the apex court, Shinde faction are trying to illegally cobble up numbers and fabricate an artificial majority in the organisation.

The apex court, on July 11, asked the newly appointed Maharashtra Assembly Speaker not to go ahead with proceedings on the disqualification petitions.

Entertainment

1000 Cops To Be Deployed At Coldplay Concert Venue In Navi Mumbai

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Thane: Nearly 1,000 cops will be deployed to maintain law and order during the Coldplay concert in Navi Mumbai, police said on Friday.

As part of their ‘Music of the Spheres World Tour’, the British rock group has three shows scheduled at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on January 18, 19 and 21.

Nearly 45,000 fans are expected to attend the event, for which elaborate security arrangements have been made, said a release by the Navi Mumbai police.

The release said 70 officers and 434 policemen will be inside the stadium as part of their bandobast. Also, 21 officers and 440 policemen will be deployed outside the stadium each day, it said.

Heavy vehicles from Uran, Nhavasheva, Pune and Thane have been banned in the area during these days. The Thane city police have also issued similar directives, restricting the movement of heavy vehicles within their jurisdiction.

There are designated parking areas during the event, the release added.

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Maharashtra

Police Issues Traffic Advisory Ahead Of TATA Mumbai Marathon 2025; Check Details

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Mumbai: The Mumbai Traffic Police department has issued a traffic advisory for residents ahead of TATA Marathon 2025 which will take place on January 19. The Mumbai Traffic Police has issued an advisory, to inform commuters about the traffic arrangements and road closures. The authorities have appealed to citizens to cooperate and plan their travel accordingly to avoid any inconvenience.

According to the advisory issued, a total of 63 routes have been blocked by the Mumbai traffic police issuing ‘no entry’ to vehicles on the route due to marathon.

The TATA Marathon is all set to take place on January 19, 2025, across Greater Mumbai with thousands of runners participating in the event. To ensure a seamless and safe experience for the runners, the authorities have made special traffic arrangements along the marathon route.

The Marathon will take place from 3 am to 2 pm on January 19, Sunday. The marathon route will be closed to regular traffic, providing a free way for the runners to complete their journey.

The traffic restrictions will be in place to prevent any disruptions or congestion that might hinder the progress of the runners. The police has informed about alternative routes that can be taken to avoid congestion.

In their advisory, Mumbai Traffic Police has informed about the categories of marathon and the routes that are to be taken for each category leads to closure of a few routes.

The TATA Marathon 2025 will have seven categories, Full Marathon (Amateur) which will take place from CSMT Dr D N Road to OCS Junction covering 42.195 kilometers, Full Marathon (Elite) which will take place from CSMT Dr D N Road to CSMT Junction covering 42.195 kilometres, Half Marathon and Police Cup will take place from Mahim reti bunder to OCS junction, 10 KM Run starting from CSMT to OCS Junction, Senior citizen run starting from CSMT to OCS Junction covering 4.2 kilometers, champions with disability run covers 1.30 Kilometers from CSMT to OCS junction and Dream Run Marathon from CSMT to Metro Junction covering 5.9 kilometers.

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Maharashtra

Coldplay Mumbai Concert: Bombay HC Dismisses PIL, Says Only State Can Act On Ticket Scalping

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Mumbai: Though, there is a ‘need for robust regulatory mechanisms’ against the unethical practices in the online ticketing ecosystem, the responsibility for creating a statutory framework lies with the legislature, the Bombay High Court has said in its order dismissing the a public interest litigation (PIL) against black marketing and ticket scalping at major events.

The division bench of Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Amit Borkar had on January 10 dismissed the PIL filed by a city based lawyer Amit Vyas alleging foul play during the online ticket sales of British band Coldplay scheduled in Navi Mumbai later this month.

Vyas had sought directions to the state government to frame laws, rules and regulations to prevent the practices of ticket scalping, touting and black marketing concerning the sale of tickets for major events.

Additionally, a request was made to the court to order the formation of a committee to conduct an inquiry into the matter and to issue directions to online ticketing companies to cooperate with the committee.

Dismissing the plea, the HC observed that the power to enact a law doesn’t lay with the judiciary. “In keeping with the constitutional scheme, courts can only guide the executive to comply with duties explicitly cast by constitutional provisions. They cannot assume a supervisory role over lawmaking powers, which remain within the exclusive domain of duly elected legislative bodies,” the court said.

The HC said they can, however, issue such directions only in case of violation of fundamental rights. “However, the practices of ticket scalping, hoarding and resale by private entities and individuals, without any direct or substantial involvement of the state or its instrumentality, do not per se violate fundamental rights of citizens,” HC observed.

“While Article 19(1)(g) guarantees the freedom to practise any profession or to carry on any occupation, this provision neither creates a fundamental right to access privately organised events nor does it prohibit all profit-driven endeavors,” the court further said adding, “No unreasonable restriction has been shown to be imposed by the state in relation to ticket scalping or resale activities by private entities.”

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