BJP'S NARVEKAR IS SPEAKER

Polls 164 votes, as against MVA nominee's 107; 12 MLAs including 7 NCP MLAs absent; while NCP's Nawab Malik and Anil Deshmukh are in jail, 5 others didn't show up

- SANJAY JOG

With the election of BJP legislator Rahul Narvekar as the Speaker through a voice vote, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's camp on Sunday cleared a major test ahead of the vote of confidence it must win to prove its majority in the Maharashtra legislative assembly. Narvekar crossed the half-way mark of 144 in the 288-strong assembly, getting 164 votes as opposed to the 107 bagged by the Maha Vikas Aghadi candidate, legislator Rajan Salvi of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena. Salvi was supported by the NCP, Congress and Independents. With one vacancy caused by the death of the Shiv Sena's Ramesh Latke, 271 of the 287 MLAs voted.

After the vote, Deputy Speaker Narhari Zirwal said that Shiv Sena MLAs from the Shinde camp had voted against the whip; there was a video recording of the entire process. The names of those who voted against the party whip would be noted.

Narvekar countered this, saying that 16 MLAs from Thackeray-led Shiv Sena had voted against the whip.