Maha Winter Session to begin today

Mumbai: For the first time in the history of Maharashtra Legislature, the winter session of both the Houses of the State Legislature will take place in Mumbai instead of Nagpur. No major business will be transacted during this brief session  which will begin on Wednesday and end on December 28.

Talking to media persons on the eve of the start of the winter session of Maharashtra Legislature, Deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar said that the winter session was being convened in Mumbai instead of Nagpur, in view of the delicate health condition of the chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, who is recovering from the cervical spine surgery that he underwent at HN Reliance Hospital here on November 12.

“Though the chief minister is doing well after his last month’s surgery, he has advised by doctors not to travel out of Mumbai.  Hence, we have decided to hold the winter session of the State Legislature in Mumbai instead of Nagpur,” Ajitdada – as Ajit Pawar is known in the State political circles – said.

The budget and monsoon sessions are always held in Mumbai, while the winter sessions are held in Nagpur.

As per the Nagpur Pact that was signed in September 1953, the government has been mandated to hold the winter sessions in Nagpur, while the budget and monsoon sessions are held in Mumbai. However, as an exception, there have been only three occasions --- in 1961, 1966, 1971 and 2018 – when the monsoon sessions were held in Nagpur.

Since the formation of the state in 1960, 56 legislature sessions have been held in Nagpur.

During the winter session of the Maharashtra Legislature beginning in Mumbai from December 22, a total of 26 bills – including Shakti Legislation will be tabled in the winter session of the legislature – will be taken up in both the Houses.

Apart from the bills, the issues like the Covid-19 situation in the state, examination paper leakage scam, State Transport employees’ agitation and the controversy over the inflated electricity



bills will figure in the winter session of the State Legislature.

Informed sources said that the Maharashtra government – which miffed over the inordinate delay in nominating 12 persons recommended by its as MLCs – is unlikely to withdraw in the suspension of 12 BJP MLAs, who were on July 21 2021 suspended from the Maharashtra Assembly on Monday for a period of one year “abusing” and “misbehaving” with the presiding officer inside and outside the House.

It may be recalled that on  July 5 12 MLAs were suspenderd after they created a ruckus over the OBC reservations issue and alleged that Speaker-in-Chair Bhaskar Jadhav did not give them enough time to speak.

The BJP MLAs, who were suspended from the Assembly for a year were Parag Alavani, Ram Satpute, Sanjay Kute, Ashish Shelar, Abhimanyu Pawar, Girish Mahajan, Atul Bhatkalkar, Harish Pimpale, Jayakumar Rawal, Yogesh Sagar, Narayan Kuche and Kirtikumar Bhangdiya.

The suspended BJP have challenged their suspension in the Supreme Court. Last week a SC bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and C T Ravikumar agreed to hear the batch of petitions and issued formal notices to the respondents, including the state of Maharashtra, seeking their responses on the pleas. On December 14, the apex court sought responses from the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly and others on the pleas filed by 12 BJP MLAs, who have challenged their one-year suspension from the Assembly for allegedly misbehaving with the presiding officer.

Speaking on the issue, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said that the state government had not suspended 12 BJP as a political vendetta

Ajitdada said that 12 BJP MLAs came  to be suspended because of the derogatory language that they used against the chair. “The language used was un-parliamentary. The decision was not tit for tat for the Governor not clearing the names of the 12 members to the legislative council. This was not at all a political vendetta,” he said.