Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi welcomed the Supreme Court's order to hold a floor test in Maharashtra within 24 hours or by tomorrow. Gandhi also expressed confidence that Maha Vikas Aghadi would emerge victorious with the support of their MLAs. "We will win the floor test," Mrs Gandhi told reporters.
Sharad Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Mrs Gandhi's party and their ideological opposite Shiv Sena have stitched together a new alliance - Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi - to try to form government in the state.
Shiv Sena’s leader Sanjay Raut said, “Truth has won. The court has given 30 hours, we can prove the majority in 30 minutes.”
Congress’s Prithviraj Chavan said, “Tomorrow, at 11 am, members to take an oath and at 5 pm Pro-tem Speaker to hold Floor Test in Maharashtra Assembly. All 3 parties (Congress-NCP-Shiv Sena) are satisfied with the Supreme Court order. Devendra Fadnavis should resign today.”
The Supreme Court on Tuesday passed an interim order to conduct a floor test in the Maharashtra Assembly on Wednesday after considering the competing claims of the parties.
Having heard the parties, the bench of the top court comprising Justices N.V. Ramana, Sanjeev Khanna and Ashok Bhushan was of the opinion that since oath-taking of the MLAs has not taken place a floor test should be conducted as soon as possible on November 27, saying the exercise should be completed before 5 p.m. on Wednesday.
The court said a pro tem speaker would be appointed and the floor test would not be conducted by secret ballot and the proceedings would be telecast live. The court said the oath to MLAs is to be administered before 5 p.m. on November 27.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal appearing for Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress alliance, mentioned before the apex court an application seeking directions to restrain the Devendra Fadnavis government from taking important policy decisions.
The apex court has given eight weeks' time to the respondents to file a reply.
Also Read: A chronology of events in the Maharashtra government formation
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