Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Friday dared his rival Eknath Shinde and his ally BJP to face fresh elections, a day after the Supreme Court's verdict in the tussle between the two factions of the Shiv Sena.
"Let's all face fresh elections and let people take the final decision. As I resigned, the Chief Minister (Eknath Shinde) should also resign on moral grounds," he said at a news conference.
He also said that he would approach the Supreme Court once again if the assembly speaker does not take a call on the disqualification of Shiv Sena MLAs who had rebelled last year, leading to the collapse of his government.
"As we went to the Supreme Court earlier, if the speaker doesn't take a decision within a timeframe, we will once again go to the Supreme Court. As of now, the speaker is abroad. When he is back, he should take a decision soon," Mr Thackeray said.
"I also want to tell Prime Minister Narendra Modi that there's a 'nanga naach' going on in the country, and you should stop that. Maharashtra's name is being dragged through the mud across the world. This shouldn't happen," he added.
He was speaking a day after the Supreme Court ruled that Mr Shinde will get to keep his job despite gaining from an illegal decision by the then governor, in a setback for the Uddhav Thackeray camp.
The Supreme Court said it cannot disqualify Mr Shinde and 15 other MLAs for revolting against then Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray in June last year. That power will rest with the speaker until a larger panel of judges rules on it.
It also rejected a request to restore Mr Thackeray's government because the leader had chosen to resign instead of facing a test of strength in the assembly.
The court, however, strongly censured then Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari, for taking decisions that helped Mr Shinde's faction, saying he had "erred" in concluding that Mr Thackeray had lost the support of the majority of MLAs.
Calling for action against the former governor, Mr Thackeray on Friday said, "There should be action taken against Bhagat Singh Koshyari. If action is taken against one, other's won't do anything illegal."
Fact Check: Newspaper Clippings Claiming Uddhav Thackeray Apologised For 1992 Riots Are Fake Eknath Shinde's Poll Challenger Kedar Dighe In Alcohol, Cash Controversy Sharad Pawar Rubbished Rahul Gandhi's Attack On Adani: BJP's Amit Malviya "Thousand Times Better...": Delhi Lt Governor's Surprise For AAP's Atishi "World War 3 Has Begun": Ukraine Ex-Military Commander Amid Russia Conflict 2 Children Strangled To Death In Bengaluru, Parents Blame Each Other: Cops Indian Army Celebrates 77th Anniversary Of Poonch's Historic Link-Up 2 Delhi Police Woman Constable Reunites 104 Missing Children With Families Putin Vows More Hypersonic Missile Tests As Ukraine Seeks Air Defence Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.