New Delhi, Nov 12 The Supreme Court on Tuesday fixed January 21, 2026, for the final hearing of the petitions filed by the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Sharad Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), both challenging the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) decisions to recognise the rival camps as the official political parties.
A Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi said the matters, which raise similar issues, will be heard together. “We will take up the matters on January 21 at 11:30 a.m.,” the Justice Kant-led Bench said, adding that the court master should ensure no important cases are listed on January 22 as well, allowing the hearing to continue the following day, if required.
The petitions challenge the ECI’s orders recognising the Eknath Shinde-led group as the official Shiv Sena and granting it the party name and the iconic “bow and arrow” symbol, and the decision to recognise the Ajit Pawar-led faction as the real NCP.
Appearing for the petitioners, senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Manu Singhvi had earlier argued that the ECI’s findings undermined the democratic structure of political parties and ignored the organisational strength and support base of the original leadership.
In its 2023 ruling, the poll body had held that the Shinde faction constituted the real Shiv Sena, citing a majority in both the legislative and organisational wings, while a similar reasoning was applied in the NCP dispute to recognise Ajit Pawar’s group.
The plea filed by Uddhav Thackeray alleged that the ECI has failed to discharge its duties as a neutral arbiter of disputes under para 15 of the Symbols Order and has acted in a manner undermining its constitutional status.
The Supreme Court had previously refused to stay the ECI’s orders but agreed to examine whether the poll body had acted within its quasi-judicial mandate while adjudicating the rival claims.
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