UBT legislators will have to follow whip: Shinde group

Mumbai: While a couple of constitutional and parliamentary experts on Saturday expressed the view that it will not be proper if the Eknath Shinde group initiates disqualification proceedings against legislators belonging to the Uddhav Thackeray faction, school education minister Deepak Kesarkar said since now they have been recognised as the real Shiv Sena, legislators belonging to the Thackeray faction will have to follow the whip and are liable for disqualification if the whip is defied.Noted constitutional expert Ulhas Bapat said if one looks at the 10th schedule of the Constitution, which pertains to anti-defection law, it is beyond the scope of the Shinde faction to issue a whip to Thackeray legislators. “In my opinion, the 16 Thackeray legislators have not left the party. As such, it will be illegal to issue a whip against them or initiate disqualification proceedings against them. There is no defection at any stage,” Bapat said. Bapat said the Election Commission had issued the verdict in haste. “Prime facie, it appears the order was issued in haste and under pressure from someone. Since the Supreme Court is seized of the entire case and is expected to declare its verdict on February 21, it would have been appropriate for the EC to wait for the apex court verdict,” Bapat said. Former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan too said the EC decided the case in haste. “The Supreme Court is expected to take a call on the decision of the Shinde faction to quit and then form the government with the help of BJP. Why so much hurry? Heaven was not going to fall,” Chavan said. Former principal secretary (legislature) Anant Kalse endorsed Bapat’s view. “In my opinion, if the Shinde faction issues a whip or initiates disqualification proceedings against Thackeray legislators, it will be bad in law and illegal, it will be abuse of power,” Kalse said. He said the 10th schedule of the Constitution on defection is very clear if two-third of the members leave a party, they will have to merge with another party while the remaining third will remain with the original party. “In my view, since the Thackeray faction has not defected, disqualification proceedings cannot be initiated against them.”