Elections to the 288-member Maharashtra assembly were held on October 21 this year. The elections were held just months after the Bharatiya Janata Party won a landslide victory in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
The elections were fought by two alliances – Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiv Sena and Congress-Nationalist Congress Party. This was a departure from the 2014 Maharashtra assembly election when all the four parties had fought solo.
However, with the BJP not being able to cross the majority mark on its own, it joined hands with its ideological cousin Shiv Sena ultimately and the two went on to rule the state in coalition for five years under chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. This year too the pre-poll alliance of the Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiv Sena coalition comfortably crossed the majority mark, winning more than 160 seats combined. Yet, to this day, Maharashtra awaits a government, and is currently under President’s rule. While the BJP looked set to return to power with the help of its ally Shiv Sena, there was some cause for worry for the party: the BJP had lost more than 15 seats compared to its 2014 Maharashtra election tally. Other than that, B.J.P. and Shiv Sena did not seem on friendly terms after the election results were out. An undertone of a split could be detected when Sena leaders spoke of holding their ally to a “50:50” agreement that had apparently been arrived at by B.J.P. chief, Amit Shah and Shiv Sena boss, Uddhav Thackeray before the Lok Sabha Elections. For the Shiv Sena, it meant sharing the Chief Minister’s post with the B.J.P. for two and a half years each. The B.J.P. however, had denied of having made any such pre-poll agreement. This has been the main point of contention between the B.J.P. and the Shiv Sena for which they have been unable to form a coalition this year, leading to the imposition of President’s rule in the state.
Meanwhile, the governor had invited the NCP to stake claim to form the government after the Shiv Sena and BJP failed to prove the majority. According to sources, at 11:30 am on Tuesday, the NCP wrote a letter to the governor stating that they would not be able to prove the majority by the given deadline of 8:30 pm, and hence asked for an extension. The governor not only refused the NCP’s request but also used the letter to cancel their allotted deadline of 8:30 pm, claiming that the party has accepted that they cannot prove the majority by then. The Shiv Sena had asked the governor for a three-day extension of the deadline to claim stake at power, which was also rejected. The governor had earlier also asked the BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP to express willingness to form government in the state. When none of them were able to come forward on time, the governor went ahead and recommended the President’s Rule.
President’s Rule implies the suspension of a state government and the imposition of direct rule of the Centre. This is achieved through the invocation of Article 356 of the Constitution by the President on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers. Under Article 356, this move can be taken “(1) If the President, on receipt of the report from the Governor of the State or otherwise, is satisfied that a situation has arisen in which the government of the State cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution…”
The President’s rule can be revoked only if the leader of a party produces letters of support from a majority of members of the Assembly, and stakes his claim to form the government. Any proclamation under Article 356 –which stands for 6 months- has to be approved by both houses in the Parliament session following it. The six-month time frame can be extended in phases for a period of 3 years. However, according to the 44th Constitutional Amendment 1978, the President’s rule cannot be imposed in any state beyond 1 year unless a Proclamation of National emergency is in operation or the Election commission certifies that the continuance of President rule is necessary to hold Assembly Elections. What finally happens in Maharashtra remains to be seen.
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