NEW DELHI: Both the Thackeray and Shinde camps of the Shiv Sena are strategising on their next moves, after Monday's Supreme Court ruling- granting 16 rebel MLAs time till July 11 to response to the disqualification notice- came as a shot in the arm for the rebels.
The order has cleared the way for a floor test in the assembly, some experts opined.
Maharashtra minister Aaditya Thackeray however pointed at a division among the rebels camping in Guwahati and said 15-16 from the group is in touch with him.
Former Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis is expected to meet Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP party chief JP Nadda in Delhi later today.
Here are the top developments in the unending political saga in Maharashtra:
Rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde has said he will soon return to Mumbai, and rubbished Shiv Sena's claim that as many as 20 MLAs of his group are in touch with the Uddhav Thackeray-led party.
Speaking to reporters outside the hotel in Guwahati, where all rebel MLAs are lodged, he said, "All these MLAs have come here on their own and to take forward Hindutva."
Senior Sena leaders have been claiming that around 20 MLAs of the party, now with Shinde in Guwahati, are in touch with them and want to return to Maharashtra.
Important decisions likely in rebels' meeting in Guwahati
The rebel Shiv Sena MLAs of the Eknath Shinde camp, who are currently in Assam, will hold a meeting on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the further plan of action, and arrive at a few important decisions, sources said.
Independent MLAs might approach Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari very soon.
"Rebel Maharashtra MLAs likely to stay for a few more days at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Guwahati, Assam. The hotel was booked till July 5 and the booking can now be extended as per requirement," sources said on Tuesday.
Sanjay Raut calls rebels 'Uneducated, walking dead'
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Tuesday took a fresh potshot at rebel MLAs who are now camped in Assam terming them as 'Jahil' (uneducated) who are like the "walking dead."
"'Jahalat' (lack of education) is a kind of death and 'Jahil' (uneducated) people are like the walking dead," Raut said in a tweet quoting Imam Ali.
Raut's fresh remarks came a day after he clarified his earlier "living corpses" remark for rebel MLAs, stating that he had used a manner of speech common in Maharashtra and that he did not intend to hurt anyone's sentiment.
Referring to the Supreme Court order allowing rebel MLAs to respond to disqualification notice only by July 11, Raut called said "it's an an order for them to rest in Guwahati till July 11."
Reben MLA Deepak Kesarkar expressed concerns about the safety of the rebel MLAs if they returned to Maharashtra, and linked it to certain comments made by Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut.
"We are not returning to Maharashtra because of Sanjay Raut. He has made party workers come out on the streets," he said.
SC order paves way for a floor test, say experts
The Supreme Court order extending till July 12, 5.30 pm, the time granted by the Deputy Speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly to Eknath Shinde and other 'rebel' MLAs to reply to disqualification notices, paves the way for a "very definite possibility" of a floor test to prove the confidence of the Assembly, said legal experts.
Given that there is no stay on such action, the entire sequence of events now points in the direction of a floor test, which could be the only way out of the impasse in the next two weeks, said experts. "There will be no disqualification till then and they are theoretically entitled to having a floor test," said senior counsel Vineet Naik.
Open to considering Shinde's proposal on govt formation: BJP
BJP on Monday opened up about the Eknath Shinde-led revolt in Shiv Sena, refusing to call that camp "rebels" and saying it was open to considering proposals on government formation from the faction.
"We do not consider anyone a rebel. If two-thirds of the MLAs are with Shinde, how can they be called rebels?" asked senior BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar, speaking after a meeting at Devendra Fadnavis' house.
So far, BJP had termed the Sena turmoil an internal matter of the party and refused to comment on it. However, after Monday's Supreme Court order shielding the rebels, it immediately held a meeting of its state core committee.
Around 15 MLAs kidnapped, want to come back: Aaditya Thackeray
Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray on Monday claimed that 15 to 20 MLAs, who are with Eknath Shinde's rebel camp are in touch with Shiv Sena and have urged the party to bring them back to Mumbai from Guwahati.
He said that the rebel MLAs have sold themselves for lakhs and crores.
"These MLAs have sold themselves for Lakhs and Crores or after their files were opened. MVA government will further continue. The power which has brought us here...we will come to power in Delhi too," said Thackeray.
"There are two groups of people in Guwahati - there's a group of 15-16 people who are in touch with us, some of them recently. The other group is the one that has run away, they have no courage and morality," the minister said.
However Shinde contradicted Thackeray and said, "There are 50 people here. They have come voluntarily and are happy. Those who claim that people are in touch with them should declare the names. They are just trying to mislead and create misunderstandings."
Shiv Sena begins party purge, set to blood second rung
A section of Sena office bearers was ousted in Raigad district, and party functionaries said fresh faces would be appointed to party posts after sacking those loyal to the rebels over the next few days. Second-rung leaders would be given key responsibilities as the Uddhav Thackeray-led party looks to rebuild its organisational base and regain its grip on the organisation, they added.
"Sena's real assets are its grassroots networks built around the shakhas and shakha pramukhs. MLAs come and go but shakhas remain. We have identified the second-rung functionaries and leaders who were sidelined as the MLAs were controlling appointment of office-bearers in their home districts. These appointments will be made soon so that there is no vacuum in the party," said a functionary.