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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 11:29:11 am

Shinde dilutes demand

Likely to be content with Deputy Mayor’s post in Mumbai Mumbai: In a decisive shift that redraws the power dynamics of Maharashtra’s urban politics, the standoff over the prestigious Mumbai Mayor’s post has ended with a strategic compromise. Following days of resort politics and intense backroom negotiations, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has reportedly diluted its demand for the top job in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), settling instead for the Deputy Mayor’s post. This...

Shinde dilutes demand

Likely to be content with Deputy Mayor’s post in Mumbai Mumbai: In a decisive shift that redraws the power dynamics of Maharashtra’s urban politics, the standoff over the prestigious Mumbai Mayor’s post has ended with a strategic compromise. Following days of resort politics and intense backroom negotiations, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has reportedly diluted its demand for the top job in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), settling instead for the Deputy Mayor’s post. This development, confirmed by high-ranking party insiders, follows the realization that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) effectively ceded its claims on the Kalyan-Dombivali Municipal Corporation (KDMC) to protect the alliance, facilitating a “Mumbai for BJP, Kalyan for Shinde” power-sharing formula. The compromise marks a complete role reversal between the BJP and the Shiv Sena. Both the political parties were in alliance with each other for over 25 years before 2017 civic polls. Back then the BJP used to get the post of Deputy Mayor while the Shiv Sena always enjoyed the mayor’s position. In 2017 a surging BJP (82 seats) had paused its aggression to support the undivided Shiv Sena (84 seats), preferring to be out of power in the Corporation to keep the saffron alliance intact. Today, the numbers dictate a different reality. In the recently concluded elections BJP emerged as the single largest party in Mumbai with 89 seats, while the Shinde faction secured 29. Although the Shinde faction acted as the “kingmaker”—pushing the alliance past the majority mark of 114—the sheer numerical gap made their claim to the mayor’s post untenable in the long run. KDMC Factor The catalyst for this truce lies 40 kilometers north of Mumbai in Kalyan-Dombivali, a region considered the impregnable fortress of Eknath Shinde and his son, MP Shrikant Shinde. While the BJP performed exceptionally well in KDMC, winning 50 seats compared to the Shinde faction’s 53, the lotter for the reservation of mayor’s post in KDMC turned the tables decisively in favor of Shiv Sena there. In the lottery, the KDMC mayor’ post went to be reserved for the Scheduled Tribe candidate. The BJP doesn’t have any such candidate among elected corporatros in KDMC. This cleared the way for Shiv Sena. Also, the Shiv Sena tied hands with the MNS in the corporation effectively weakening the Shiv Sena (UBT)’s alliance with them. Party insiders suggest that once it became clear the BJP would not pursue the KDMC Mayor’s chair—effectively acknowledging it as Shinde’s fiefdom—he agreed to scale down his demands in the capital. “We have practically no hope of installing a BJP Mayor in Kalyan-Dombivali without shattering the alliance locally,” a Mumbai BJP secretary admitted and added, “Letting the KDMC become Shinde’s home turf is the price for securing the Mumbai Mayor’s bungalow for a BJP corporator for the first time in history.” The formal elections for the Mayoral posts are scheduled for later this month. While the opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA)—led by the Shiv Sena (UBT)—has vowed to field candidates, the arithmetic heavily favors the ruling alliance. For Eknath Shinde, accepting the Deputy Mayor’s post in Mumbai is a tactical retreat. It allows him to consolidate his power in the MMR belt (Thane and Kalyan) while remaining a partner in Mumbai’s governance. For the BJP, this is a crowning moment; after playing second fiddle in the BMC for decades, they are poised to finally install their own “First Citizen” of Mumbai.

Tamil Nadu Governor’s Withholding of Bills “Illegal and Arbitrary”: Supreme Court



In a significant victory for the MK Stalin-led Tamil Nadu government, the Supreme Court has ruled that Governor RN Ravi's decision to withhold assent to 10 crucial Bills was "illegal" and "arbitrary". The court emphasized that once assent is withheld, the Governor cannot then reserve those Bills for the President.


"The action of the Governor to reserve the 10 bills for the President is illegal and arbitrary. Thus, the action is set aside. All actions taken by the Governor thereto for the 10 bills are set aside. These Bills shall be deemed to be cleared from the date it was re-presented to the Governor," said the bench comprising Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice R Mahadevan. The court further noted that Governor Ravi had not acted in "good faith".


According to the bench, the Governor should have approved the Bills after they were passed again by the Assembly and re-submitted to him.


Article 200 of the Constitution outlines the Governor's options when a Bill passed by the state legislature is presented to him. The Governor can either give assent, withhold it, or reserve the Bill for the President's consideration. He may also return the Bill to the House for reconsideration of certain provisions. However, if the House passes it again, the Governor is bound to give his assent. A Governor can only reserve a Bill if he or she believes it contradicts the Constitution, the directive principles of state policy, or if it raises issues of national importance.


The court also introduced specific timelines for these decisions. It stated that any delay beyond these timeframes could be subjected to judicial review. Governors will now have a month to either give or withhold assent and to reserve the Bill for the President—with the advice of the Council of Ministers.


If the reservation is done without ministerial advice, the deadline is extended to three months. For Bills re-submitted after being passed again by the Assembly, the Governor must act within a month. The court affirmed that any use of power under Article 200 is subject to judicial scrutiny.


Clarifying its stance, the court stated it is "in no way undermining the Governor's powers". It added, "All actions of the Governor must align with the principle of parliamentary democracy."


RN Ravi, a former IPS officer and one-time official with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), assumed the post of Tamil Nadu Governor in 2021. Since then, his relationship with the MK Stalin-led government has remained strained. The DMK has accused him of behaving like a spokesperson for the BJP and obstructing legislative matters and appointments. Ravi, however, maintains that the Constitution allows him to withhold assent to Bills.


Tensions between the state government and Raj Bhavan have surfaced on multiple occasions, including during the Governor’s customary address to the Assembly. Last year, Governor Ravi walked out in protest because the National Anthem was not sung at the beginning of the address. Traditionally, the Tamil Thai Valthu is sung when the House convenes and the National Anthem at the end. Ravi objected, insisting that the national anthem should be played both at the beginning and end.


In 2023, he declined to deliver the customary address to the Assembly, claiming the draft contained "numerous passages with misleading claims far from truth". A year prior, he had refused to read sections of the speech that included mentions of BR Ambedkar, Periyar, CN Annadurai, the term 'Dravidian Model', and references to law and order in the state.

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