Maharashtra Guv writes to Uddhav Thackeray, asks him to prove majority in floor test

Amidst the amplifying political turmoil, Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on Wednesday wrote to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, asking him to prove his majority in the assembly session tomorrow. In the letter, the Governor has informed the CM that a special session of the Vidhan Sabha will be convened for a floor test at 11 AM on June 30 wherein a trust vote will be carried out against him. Governor Koshyari has also flagged concern over the political scenario unfolding in Maharashtra currently and called it 'very disturbing'. 

"There has been extensive coverage in the electronic and print media that 39 MLAs of the Shiv Sena Legislature Party have expressed their sincere desire and decision to exit the Maha Vikas Aghadi Government. In this backdrop, an email dated 28.06.2022 was received by Raj Bhavan, Mumbai by 7 independent MLAs. The said letter states that the Chief Minister of Maharashtra has lost the confidence of the majority on the floor of the House thereby, making it imperative to conduct a floor test at the earliest," the letter read. 

Further, he informed that as the Leader of Opposition, Devendra Fadnavis had visited him personally yesterday and he had been briefed about the situation and presented a letter which stated that the Chief Minister has lost the majority in Vidhan Sabha. 

"The violence unleashed in Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra against some of the 39 MLAs including breaking down their offices does pose a threat to their life and also that of their family members. After having carefully gone rough all the material available before me including the reports in electronic and print media, I am of the opinion that a floor test for proving the majority of the Chief Minister is imperative to ensure that the Government continues to function with the confidence of the House," the letter directed, urging Uddhav Thackeray to make arrangements for convening the session of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly.

The Special session has been summoned on 30.06.2022 at 11:00 AM with the only agenda of a trust vote against the Chief Minister. The proceedings of the floor test shall be concluded in any case by 5 PM on 30.06.2022 and will be live telecast for which, the Governor has asked appropriate arrangements to be made.

It is important to mention that the Maharashtra government and Deputy Speaker's lawyer can demand an urgent hearing against the floor test in Supreme Court. During the hearing of Eknath Shinde's petition yesterday, the counsel for the Maharashtra government had expressed apprehension over a possible floor test session being called to which the Supreme Court had said that if they feel anything wrong has happened, then the doors of the court are open.

Maharashtra Governor's letter to Uddhav Thackeray

MVA government plunges into crisis

The MVA government plunged into a crisis on June 21 after senior Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde and other party MLAs went incommunicado and went to the Le Meridian hotel in Surat. While the rebels urged Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray to sever ties with NCP and Congress and return to the NDA fold, the latter has refused to accept this demand following which the camp moved base to Guwahati.

As the rebels continue to be holed up in a Guwahati hotel, Shiv Sena filed a petition seeking the disqualification of 16 party MLAs. Subsequently, they challenged the disqualification proceedings and Eknath Shinde's replacement as the Legislative Party leader in the SC.

On Monday, the Supreme Court's put the disqualification of the 16 rebel Shiv Sena MLAs on hold till July 12. The time for rebel MLAs to respond to Deputy Speaker's notice has been extended till July 12, 5.30 PM and the top court has asked the Maharashtra government to protect the life and properties of all 39 MLAs and their families.