MVA allies irked over Shinde sharing stage with CJI Lalit amid SC hearing pleas of rival Sena factions

'A serious case of challenging the legitimacy of the Eknath Shinde government is being heard by a Constitutional Bench of the SC'

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has come under severe criticism from the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance after he shared dais with Justice Uday Umesh Lalit, the Chief Justice of India.

CJI Lalit was on Saturday felicitated at an event in Mumbai where Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju was present. Maharashtra CM Shinde, who was also present on the occasion, had said it was a proud moment for the state as its "son" became the Chief Justice of India.

However, the Sharad Pawar-led NCP, Congress and Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena have targeted Shinde for sharing dais with Justice Lalit, while the Supreme Court is heading various issues related to the formation of the new government in Maharashtra.

State NCP president Jayant Patil, whose party is a constituent of the MVA along with the Sena and Congress, in a tweet said, "A serious case of challenging the legitimacy of the Eknath Shinde government is being heard by a Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court." "In such a case, it is improper that Shinde shares stage with the Chief Justice of India. This is not as per protocol."

Posting pictures of Saturday's event, Congress spokesman Sachin Sawant tweeted, "When legitimacy and legality of the Shinde-Fadnavis government is being examined by Hon'ble SC itself and not only the current state government but also the man heading it can be disqualified, the dais looks rather incongruous." Shiv Sena spokesperson Arvind Sawant claimed nothing was happening these days as per norms, rules and law. "This is the reason we say democracy is in danger," he added.

Shinde had led a revolt against the Shiv Sena leadership in June this year which resulted in the collapse of the Thackeray-led MVA government. Later, Shinde was sworn in as the CM on June 30 along with BJP's Devendra Fadnavis as his deputy. The Supreme Court recently referred to a five-judge bench the petitions filed by the Shiv Sena and CM Eknath Shinde factions raising several constitutional questions related to defection, merger and disqualification.

(With PTI inputs)