Campaigning for the massive elections to 29 municipal corporations across Maharashtra came to a noisy end on Tuesday, setting the stage for a high-stakes showdown on January 15. The focal point remains the battle for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), where the BJP-led Mahayuti is fighting to seize control of India's wealthiest civic body. Coming in the way are the estranged cousins, Uddhav and Raj Thackeray, who have allied for the first time in two decades to consolidate the Marathi vote bank.
Still, the scale of this election is staggering: 3.48 crore voters will decide the fate of close to 16,000 candidates across 893 wards. While Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis led the charge for the ruling alliance, the political dynamics have been complex. In a tactical move to court "non-Hindu" voters, Ajit Pawar’s NCP was largely kept separate from the core Mahayuti campaign in specific areas.
Meanwhile, the Congress has decided to step out from the shadow of its usual allies, choosing to partner with Prakash Ambedkar’s Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi in Mumbai while going completely solo in Nagpur. This is a landmark election for the Shiv Sena, being the first BMC poll since the 2022 split that saw Eknath Shinde walk away with the party name and symbol. For 25 years, an undivided Sena ruled Mumbai, and the current fight has largely devolved into a debate over identity. The BJP has used the campaign to warn that a win for Uddhav’s faction could lead to a Muslim mayor, a claim countered by the Thackeray camp’s promise of a Marathi mayor. Fadnavis eventually jumped into the fray, guaranteeing that the mayor would be both "Hindu and Marathi."
Voters are being wooed with various populist promises. The Mahayuti is offering women a 50 per cent discount on BEST bus fares, while the Thackeray-MNS duo has countered with a ₹1,500 monthly allowance for domestic workers and property tax waivers for smaller homes. These elections are long overdue, with most corporations operating without elected representatives for over six years. Following the polling on Wednesday, the results will be declared on January 16, finally ending the administrative vacuum in major urban hubs like Pune, Nagpur, and Thane.
Also read: Mahayuti unveils Mumbai poll manifesto
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