Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) has approached the Supreme Court, seeking an urgent hearing of its petition challenging the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) decision to recognize the Eknath Shinde faction as the official Shiv Sena and grant them the 'bow and arrow' election symbol.

Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal made the plea before a Supreme Court bench led by Justice Surya Kant, citing the urgency due to the Court’s recent order directing the conduct of Maharashtra local body elections. Sibal argued, "Your lordships have said local body elections be held. There is urgency now."

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Sibal emphasized his reliance on the Supreme Court’s 2023 Constitution Bench judgment, which stated that legislative majority cannot be the sole criterion for determining the legitimate faction of a political party. According to Sibal, the ECI's decision was solely based on legislative majority, disregarding the constitutional principles.

However, Justice Surya Kant responded, stating that it might be difficult to schedule the hearing before the vacation period. In response, Sibal reiterated that his arguments were strictly based on the Constitution Bench's judgment, seeking the Court’s intervention.

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Justice Kant further questioned why the Shiv Sena (UBT) could not contest the elections with their currently assigned symbol, stating, "All of you have a symbol, go contest." Sibal, however, pointed out that the Eknath Shinde group possessed the original Shiv Sena symbol, which could significantly impact voter perception.

"But he has the original symbol of Shiv Sena," Sibal argued, highlighting the symbolic value associated with the 'bow and arrow' emblem.

Justice Kant clarified that while the elections should proceed without disruption, the rights of the Shiv Sena (UBT) would be preserved, subject to the final outcome of the case. He stated, "Let the elections be held smoothly. In local bodies, mostly voters don't support a symbol."

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The bench also referenced the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) case, where the Court had previously issued an interim order with several conditions. "In the NCP case, the Court had made an interim arrangement with a lot of conditions," Justice Kant explained.

Sibal insisted that the Supreme Court’s Constitution Bench judgment should be upheld, prompting Justice Kant to assure that the Court would review the matter’s urgency and potentially list it during the vacation.

The matter now awaits further directions from the Supreme Court.

Case Details: Sunil Prabhu v. Eknath Shinde & Ors. | Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 1644-1662 of 2024