Bombay HC scraps pleas against Fadnavis trust vote

The petitioners claimed that the Fadnavis govt. was a "Constitutional fraud" and challenged the Speaker's action calling for a voice vote.

The Bombay High Court on Thursday dismissed three petitions challenging the voice vote carried out in the Maharashtra Assembly in favour of the Devendra Fadnavis Government.

The Bombay High Court on Thursday dismissed three petitions filed against the voice vote carried out in the Maharashtra Assembly in favour of the Devendra Fadnavis Government.

The division bench of Justices V M Kanade and Anuja Prabhudesai said it will issue the judgment explaning the reasons for scrapping the petitions, by next week.

The Maharashtra Congress Legislature Party and two other persons had moved the court seeking dismissal of the BJP Government on the grounds that it did not have majority. The petitioners had claimed that the government was a "Constitutional fraud." They had also challenged the Speaker's action of calling for a voice vote.

But the government had strongly opposed the petitions. It had argued that the Speaker had followed proper procedures while declaring the voice vote on the floor of the House.

Arguing in the matter on Wednesday, senior counsel Shrihari Aney had put on the petitioners, the onus of proving that the government was in minority.

Anyway, in view of the reunion of the BJP and Shiv Sena on Thursday, the government has very little to worry about the petitions challenging its strength in the assembly.