The people of the state will not forgive those who were behind this outcome, an editorial in the Sena (UBT) mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ said while also targeting the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), an ally of the rival Shiv Sena led by Shinde. Narwekar on Wednesday held that the Shiv Sena faction led by Shinde — who rebelled against Uddhav Thackeray in 2022 and split the party — was the “real political party” when the two rival groups emerged, and rejected the disqualification petitions filed by both the camps.
Speaking at a news conference here, Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut said the decision was on the expected lines and there was “match-fixing”. “There is anger among the people. The Supreme Court had given him the responsibility of doing justice, but Narwekar acted like Shinde’s lawyer. It was advocate Narwekar pleading for Shinde’s group,” he said.
Narwekar, notably, is a lawyer by training. Raut further said that the Speaker erred in refusing to accept the 2018 constitution of the party as it had been placed before the Supreme Court. “The Speaker acted as a BJP worker and not as a tribunal,” he said, adding that the Sena (UBT) would approach the Supreme Court against the ruling.
The editorial in ‘Saamana’ stated that the Constitution “has been trampled upon by recognising a gang of thieves (as real Shiv Sena).” The speaker’s order was pre-decided and there was nothing shocking about it, it claimed. “The lengthy decision was written by his (Narwekar’s) bosses in Delhi,” the Sena (UBT) mouthpiece said, adding that the decision to hand over Bal Thackeray’s Shiv Sena to “traitors” amounted to “dishonesty with Maharashtra.” Narwekar had a chance to script history but his ruling “blackened” the face of democracy, the editorial said.
Sena (UBT) leader Anil Parab said the Speaker trampled on the Supreme Court’s order, and the court will take due notice of it. “Once we get a certified copy, we will sit with our lawyers and prepare the petition and approach the Supreme Court. We believe that the court will take this matter very seriously,” Parab added.
