October 9, 2025

The Supreme Court has announced an exciting showdown for November 12, where it will hear the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena faction's plea to challenge the Maharashtra Assembly speaker's decision. This decision gave the 'bow and arrow' party symbol to the rival Eknath Shinde faction, sparking fierce disputes. The hearing may extend to November 13 if needed.\n\nSenior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Shiv Sena-UBT, highlighted the urgency, saying, "Local body elections are likely to be held in January next year," and hopes the court will give a final verdict before those polls. The bench, led by Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi, promised to hear all parties thoroughly.\n\nThe fiery symbol battle began after the speaker, Rahul Narwekar, refused to disqualify 16 MLAs from Shinde's camp in January 2024. Instead of punishing defections, the speaker recognized Shinde's faction as the true Shiv Sena based on their legislative majority. This move shocked the Uddhav faction, which called the speaker's ruling "patently unlawful and perverse."\n\nThe controversy goes back to when Shinde led a rebellion against Uddhav Thackeray 18 months ago. Since then, Shinde's position has been strengthened, becoming a deputy chief minister along with Ajit Pawar, with Devendra Fadnavis as Maharashtra’s chief minister. The political math shows Shinde’s faction winning 57 seats, BJP 132, and the Pawar-led NCP 41 in state polls, while Shinde's group secured 7 Lok Sabha seats in 2024.\n\nThe stakes are sky-high as the top court prepares to decide who rightfully owns the iconic 'bow and arrow.' As election season approaches, all eyes are glued to this masaledar legal drama in Maharashtra’s political kitchen!

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Tags: Supreme court, Shiv sena, Uddhav thackeray, Eknath shinde, Party symbol dispute, Maharashtra elections,