BMC, 28 other Municipal Corporations to go to polls on Jan 15, vote count on 16

 

 

 

A YEAR after Assembly polls, Maharashtra will see another big electoral battle on January 15 when 29 Municipal Corporations, including the cash-rich Mumbai, will vote, giving an opportunity to ruling Mahayuti and Opposition MVA to test their popularity in major urban centres. As many as 2,869 seats, including 227 of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), will be up for grabs in these corporations where more than 3.48 crore voters, including 1,81,93,666 men and 1,66,79,755 women, will be eligible to exercise their franchise, the State Election Commission (SEC) said while announcing the much-awaited polls schedule on Monday.

 

Votes will be counted on January 16 and the outcome will be keenly watched as the BJP-led MahaYuti will seek to stamp its supremacy in urban landscape, especially in Mumbai, while the Opposition parties will try to redeem themselves after last year’s rout in Assembly polls. Asia’s largest civic body with more than Rs 74,000 crore budget in 2025-26, the BMC was ruled by the undivided Shiv Sena with the BJP as its junior ally for more than two decades till 2017 and the polls will be a litmus test for former CM Uddhav Thackeray and his party Shiv Sena (UBT).

 

Ahead of the polls, Uddhav Thackeray mended ties with his once-estranged cousin Raj and both Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) led by the latter are expected to join hands to put up a united fight. The break up of 29 corporations is: Total wards: 893, total seats: 2,869, seats for women: 1,442, SCs 341, STs, 77 and OBC seats 759. Waghmare said filing of nominations will begin on December 23 and the process will go on till December 30. Scrutiny of papers will be done on December 31 and January 2 is the last date of withdrawal of nominations.

 

Symbol allocation and final list of candidates will be published on January 3. The notification for BMC elections will be issued on December 16 and those for the remaining 28 municipal corporations on December 18. Respective municipal commissioners will issue the notifications at their level. Voting in all municipal corporations will be held from 7.30 am to 5.30 pm. With announcement of the election schedule, the MCC has come into force in municipal corporation areas. Counting of all votes polled (on December 2 and 20) will be taken up on December 21.

 

Poll schedule for Zilla Parishads and Panchayat Samitis whose termed have expired is still to be announced. BJP-Sena tie-up in most cities, friendly contests with NCP, says Fadnavis: MAHARASHTRA CM Devendra Fadnavis said the BJP and Shiv Sena will contest the upcoming civic polls together in most places and efforts are underway to seal seat-sharing arrangements among MahaYuti allies, including NCP, in the maximum number of corporations. He said there will be friendly contests between the BJP and Ajit Pawar-led NCP in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad municipal corporations.

 

Fadnavis said the prolonged rule by administrators was against democratic principles. Fadnavis said there will be an alliance among the MahaYuti partners, but in most cities, the tie-up will be between the BJP and Shiv Sena, led by Eknath Shinde.