New Delhi: Amid an impending split in the Shiv Sena Parliamentary Party, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde reached the national capital on Tuesday to meet Speaker Om Birla and review the legal strategy on the disqualification petition against 16 MLAs supporting him. The plea will come up for hearing in the apex Court on Wednesday. Shinde is also likely to meet the breakaway faction of the Shiv Sena MPs here on Tuesday.
The chief minister said he was here for discussions with the legal team on the disqualification petition filed by the Uddhav Thackeray camp against 16 MLAs supporting him. He will also hold discussions with the legal team on the Other Backward Class (OBC) reservations issue as the matter is expected to come up for hearing in the Supreme Court.
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A letter requesting recognition of a separate group of MPs joining the Shinde group will be handed over to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Tuesday. An online meeting of the Shinde group was held after the presidential elections on Monday in which 12 Shiv Sena MPs participated. The names of Rahul Shewale for the post of Group Leader and Bhavana Gawli for the post of Chief Whip were discussed.
The MPs accompanying the Shinde group include Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's son Shrikant Shinde, Rahul Shewale, Hemant Patil, Prataprao Jadhav, Kripal Tumane, Bhavana Gawli, Srirang Barane, Sanjay Mandelik, Darishsheel Mane, Sadashiv Lokhande, Hemant Godse and Rajendra Gavit.
The Maharashtra government is committed to providing justice to OBCs, Shinde told reporters here. The breakaway faction of the Shiv Sena members is also expected to meet Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Tuesday with a plea to recognise them as a separate group in the lower house.
To questions on a clutch of petitions related to the Maharashtra political crisis scheduled for hearing in the Supreme Court on Wednesday, the chief minister said he has faith in the judiciary. "We have unwavering faith and trust in our judiciary. In a democracy, the majority holds significance," Shinde said. (With Agency inputs)
