Shiv Sena symbol dispute: Shinde camp to argue its case in Supreme Court today

The dispute over the Shiv Sena party and its bow-and-arrow symbol came up for hearing again in the Supreme Court on September 15. The case has now reached its final stage. Arguments from the Thackeray camp have concluded, and Neeraj Kishan Kaul will now present the case on behalf of Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The hearing will be held at 2 pm before a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant, Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohan.

In hearings so far, both sides have placed several key issues before the court. Lawyers for the Shinde camp had earlier questioned why Uddhav Thackeray wrongfully changed the party constitution drafted by Balasaheb Thackeray. In today's hearing, arguments will again be presented on behalf of Eknath Shinde. It is being said that the Solicitor General will present the case for the Election Commission and other constitutional bodies, which is why political circles are closely watching today's hearing.

The argument on behalf of Uddhav Thackeray was made by senior advocate Kapil Sibal, and his submissions had caused unease within the Shinde camp as well. Sibal said that ownership of a political party cannot be decided merely on the basis of the number of MLAs. The organisational structure of the party and its original constitution are what matter most, he argued in court. A split in the legislature party cannot be treated as a split in the original political party, he told the court, drawing a distinction between the legislature party and the political party while citing some earlier cases related to this.

Several changes were made suddenly within the party after Balasaheb Thackeray's death. The post of "Party Chief" was created in 2013, and the party constitution was amended in 2018. The Shinde camp alleges that this was not done democratically, that elections were never held for lower posts within the party, and that the party's affairs were being run in an autocratic manner.

The final hearing in the Supreme Court on this Shiv Sena party and symbol dispute has been going on for the past month. Lawyers for the Shinde camp cited the Supreme Court's principle that the number of MLAs in the assembly is an important factor in deciding which political party is the real one, and on this basis they backed the Election Commission's decision. The lawyers also argued in court that the Election Commission had given its decision keeping the number of MLAs in mind, and that Uddhav Thackeray had allied the party with forces against Shiv Sena's original ideology, which caused considerable resentment within the party.

The lawyers also raised the question of why Uddhav Thackeray, while serving as working president, did not hold internal party elections after the post of "Shiv Sena chief" was abolished following Balasaheb Thackeray's death in 2013. With claims and counter-claims now complete from both sides, all eyes are on what the Supreme Court ultimately decides in the case.