Numbers matter in democracy, we have them: Eknath Shinde after Speaker's ruling

Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday said numbers are important in democracy, and the Shiv Sena led by him has the numbers as against the rival faction led by Uddhav Thackeray.

Reacting to the Maharashtra assembly Speaker's ruling which said his faction was the real Shiv Sena, Shinde also said that the party chief's individual opinion cannot be the opinion of the entire party.

Even the Election Commission of India allotted the name and symbol of the Shiv Sena to his party, he noted.

Reading out his ruling on disqualification petitions filed by Shinde-led Sena and the rival group led by Thackeray against each other's MLAs, Speaker Rahul Narwekar held that when the split in the party became evident, it was the Shinde-led group that was the real Sena.

The Speaker rejected all the petitions seeking disqualification of MLAs. "No MLA is being disqualified,” he said.