Bhagat Singh Koshyari said he had "great respect" for the Supreme Court.
Bhagat Singh Koshyari, the former governor of Maharashtra, on Thursday, dodged questions about the lacerating criticism from the Supreme Court for ordering then Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to prove his majority in the assembly amid a mutiny in his Shiv Sena party last June.
The 80-year-old former BJP member and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) veteran, who served as Maharashtra governor from 2019 to this February, said he had great respect for the top court but did not think he had been punished by it after the Supreme Court ruled that he had acted illegally in the face-off.
Speaking with NDTV, Mr Koshyari did not express any regret about his decision, which contributed to the collapse of the three-party Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government led by Mr Thackeray and the formation of a new government by Eknath Shinde of the Shiv Sena faction, backed by the BJP.
"I have resigned from the post of governor and I don't think they have given any punishment to the former governor," Mr Koshyari said. "Had (SC) given the sentence, I would have appealed."
He said he had done what he felt was right at the time, and that it was the job of journalists and lawyers to discuss the Supreme Court's decision.
"It is the job of media persons, analysts it is the job of lawyers to discuss it... Discuss the Supreme Court's decision," he said. "I have great respect for what the Supreme Court says. The Supreme Court has every right to comment, we respect that."
When asked if he agreed with the court that his decision to order a floor test for Mr Thackeray within 24 hours was "not in accordance with the law", Mr Koshyari evaded a direct reply and said, "We're done."
The comments come after the Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that Mr Shinde will continue as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra and that it cannot restore the MVA government as Mr Thackeray had resigned without facing a floor test.
Pulling up Mr Koshyari, the court said he had acted "without any objective material" to conclude that Mr Thackeray had lost the confidence of the house and that he had "exceeded his constitutional authority" by calling for a floor test within 24 hours.