Court puts on hold state's allotment of JD(S) office to Bacchu Kadu's party

The Bombay High Court granted an interim stay, putting a hold on the state government's order allowing space for Bacchu Kadu's Prahar Janshakti Party in South Mumbai. The court noted that the Janta Dal (Secular) party had not been heard when an order was passed by the Maharashtra government.

The JD(S) plea pointed out that Barrack No.10 near Mantralaya was allocated to them way back in 1978, which then became their Maharashtra state headquarters. However, on July 18, 2023, Prahar Janshakti Party chief Bacchu Kadu allegedly wrote to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, claiming the office of JD(S) had been closed for a long time.

Advocates Vishwajit Sawant and Nikhil Patil, appearing for JD(S), told the court it was only after a social media post, uploaded by a Prahar Janshakti Party member, that they found out about the order passed by the Maharashtra government.

Bacchu Kadu is a leader of the Prahar Janshakti Party which is in alliance with the Eknath Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis-led government in Maharashtra. He heads a state-level committee of the Divyang Welfare Department for the welfare of people with disabilities.

The court has directed the government to file a reply.

Meanwhile, advocates Asim Naphade and Pratap Nimbalkar appearing for Prahar Janshakti Party submitted that JD(S) had hardly any presence in the state and that Kadu's party has a relatively larger presence and base than them. They sought time to reply to the JD(S) plea.

A bench of Justices Sunil Shukre and Firdosh Pooniwalla said, "Having considered the submissions that the impugned order has been issued without granting any opportunity to the petitioner, we direct that there shall be an interim stay to the effect and operation of the impugned order till the next date."

The bench will next hear the plea on September 26.

FIGHT OVER OFFICE

JD(S), in their plea, has said they are in "daily use of the Headquarter premises and unilateral reduction of the office space to 200 Sq Ft is illegal and arbitrary."

They added that "a letter dated 18th July 2023 and Government Resolution dated August 23 2023 smacks of mala fide and issued due to the illegal intervention/influence" of Kadu's party.

Deeming the Maharashtra government's decision as "discriminatory and unreasonable," the JD(S) plea said that the space is notified by the State Election Commission as the Maharashtra State Headquarter of the JD(S) and the "sudden and unilateral" reduction of the same cannot be permitted in such a brazen manner.

"It is abundantly clear from the Facebook post that, under the guise of accommodating the poor and needy, the Party has got itself office accommodation in Mumbai," the plea stated.

The plea sought a quashing of the government's decision and demanded a stay on it.