Jolt to Uddhav, SC won't refer pleas to larger Bench for now

New Delhi, February 17

In a setback to the Uddhav Thackeray faction of the Shiv Sena, the Supreme Court on Friday refused to make an immediate reference to a seven-judge Bench for the reconsideration of its 2016 verdict in the Nabam Rebia case which restrained a Speaker, facing proceedings for his removal, from deciding petitions seeking disqualification of MLAs. “The issue of whether a reference to a Bench of seven judges should be made cannot be considered in the abstract; isolated or divorced from the facts of the (Maharashtra political crisis) case. Whether the above principle, which has been formulated in Nabam Rebia (case), has an impact upon the factual position in the present case, needs deliberation,” a five-judge Constitution Bench led by CJI DY Chandrachud said.

“The issue whether a reference of the decision in Nabam Rebia (case) to a larger Bench is warranted will be determined together with the merits of the (Maharashtra) case,” said the Bench.

The Bench will now resume the hearing on legal issues arising out of the 2022 Maharashtra political crisis on February 21.