Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar arrived in the national capital two days after the Supreme Court's verdict to submit a status report on the disqualification of MLAs. This has led to speculation about the timing of his visit. Although Narvekar clarified that the trip was pre-planned and included several meetings, there are speculations that he is in Delhi to consult with lawyers regarding the case before formally responding to the top court.
"It was pre-planned. I was scheduled to attend pre-scheduled meetings and programs," he told reporters.
Narvekar said, "The Supreme Court has directed to start the hearing, and it will take place at the right time. There will be no delay or discrepancy. At the same time, I would like to tell you that there will be no rush in delivering this judgment to avoid the miscarriage of justice."
"Supreme Court has not given any adverse verdict or stricture. They have upheld the respect and status of the speaker's chair and provided some directions to pass a procedural order. We will go through the order and decide if the disqualification of 16 MLAs should be heard first. If necessary, we will call Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde for a hearing," he further added.
In the meantime, it is anticipated that Narwekar will send notifications to both Shiv Sena faction leaders, Uddhav Thackeray and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, summoning them for a hearing. Additionally, a fresh hearing involving the 54 Shiv Sena MLAs is expected to occur early next week.