On Wednesday, Rahul Narwekar, the speaker of the Maharashtra assembly, issued a ruling supporting the Shiv Sena faction headed by Eknath Shinde in the ongoing ‘Sena vs Sena tussle.’ He officially recognised the group led by CM Shinde as the ‘real Shiv Sena.’ Narwekar emphasised that MLAs cannot face disqualification merely for being ‘incommunicado,’ as claimed by the faction led by Uddhav Thackeray.

Following the ouster of the Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government in June 2022, both Shiv Sena factions filed cross-petitions seeking the disqualification of each other’s MLAs under the anti-defection law.

However, the long-awaited verdict in the case came over 18 months after the Shiv Sena experienced a vertical split leading to a change in leadership in the state. Shinde previously emphasised that Narwekar should decide based on merit, citing the Election Commission’s approval for his faction to retain the name ‘Shiv Sena’ and its ‘bow and arrow’ symbol. He also noted that his group holds 67 percent of the Sena lawmakers in the assembly and 75 percent in the Lok Sabha.

Here’s a timeline of events:

June 20, 2022: Shinde, along with several MLAs, rebelled against the then chief minister Thackeray, resulting in a split within the Shiv Sena and the collapse of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition, which also included the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Congress.

June 23, 2022: At least 16 MLAs received disqualification notices from the Maharashtra speaker following the split.

June 25, 2022: The rebel MLAs appealed before the SC.

June 26, 2022: The SC granted interim relief to the 16 rebel MLAs of the Shinde faction.

July 3, 2022: The new speaker recognised the Sena faction led by Shinde.

August 23, 2022: Cases concerned with the disqualification of Shiv Sena MLAs from both the Uddhav and Shinde factions were referred to a constitution bench.

March 16, 2023: The Supreme Court completed the hearing in the disqualification matter but reserved the order.

May 11, 2023: The Supreme Court ruled that the government in Maharashtra led by Shinde will persist as the court is unable to reinstate the previous coalition government due to Thackeray’s resignation without undergoing a floor test.

October 17, 2023: Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, leading a Supreme Court bench, reprimanded Narwekar for the delay in resolving the disqualification petitions.

October 30, 2023: The Supreme Court established December 31 as the deadline for the speaker to decide on the cross-petitions filed by Sena MPs.

December 15, 2023: The Supreme Court extended the deadline until January 10 for speaker Rahul Narwekar to decide on the cross-petitions filed by opposing factions of the Shiv Sena.

January 9, 2024: Uddhav Thackeray, the leader of Shiv Sena (UBT), submitted an affidavit to the Supreme Court opposing a recent meeting between Maharashtra assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar and chief minister Eknath Shinde. Thackeray pointed out that since the Supreme Court’s directive to Narwekar to make a decision on the disqualification petitions, the speaker has had two meetings with the chief minister.

January 10: 2024: Maharashtra speaker declared Shiv Sena led by CM Shinde’s faction as the ‘real Shiv Sena’.