Voting is underway across Maharashtra for elections to 29 municipal corporations, including the high-profile Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), with tight security arrangements in place. The polls have drawn national attention as major parties vie for control of the country’s richest civic body.
A total of 3.48 crore voters are eligible to elect 15,931 candidates across 2,869 seats in 893 wards. In the BMC alone, nearly 1,700 candidates are competing for 227 seats, with an annual budget exceeding Rs 74,400 crore. The elections are being held after a four-year delay and come more than six years after the expiry of local body terms between 2020 and 2023 due to legal and administrative hurdles.
The contest in Mumbai has emerged as the focal point, with the BJP-led MahaYuti alliance facing the reunited Shiv Sena faction led by cousins Uddhav and Raj Thackeray. The alliance’s campaign has been led by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who toured the state urging voters to support MahaYuti candidates, which include the BJP and the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction.
This marks the first BMC elections since the Shiv Sena split in 2022, when Shinde broke away with backing from most party MLAs. The undivided Shiv Sena had controlled the BMC for 25 years, from 1997 to 2022. The mayoral contest has become a flashpoint, with the BJP asserting that a Shiv Sena (UBT) victory could result in a Muslim mayor, a claim rejected by Uddhav Thackeray’s faction, which pledged a Marathi mayor. Fadnavis also emphasized that the next mayor would be Hindu and Marathi.
Party-wise, the BJP is contesting 137 BMC seats, the Shiv Sena UBT 163, the Shinde-led Shiv Sena 90, the NCP 94, Congress 143, MNS 52, and VBA 46. Across the rest of Maharashtra, Congress has fielded 1,263 candidates. Ahead of polling, over 25,000 police personnel have been deployed in Mumbai to ensure security and smooth conduct.
In addition to Mumbai, local political alliances have shifted in other cities. Estranged cousins Uddhav and Raj Thackeray joined forces to consolidate Marathi votes, while rival NCP factions forged understandings in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad to strengthen local coordination.
The counting of votes for all 29 municipal corporations is scheduled for January 16. Observers note that the outcomes of these elections will have significant implications for Maharashtra’s political balance, particularly in urban centers where control of civic bodies can influence developmental priorities and administrative authority.
