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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 11:29:11 am

Bihar’s huge gain, Maharashtra’s pause

Shadow cast over the national trajectories of several heavyweights including Fadnavis Mumbai: The sudden appointment of Nitin Nabin as the BJP’s national Working National President on December 14, 2025, has done more than just fill a leadership vacuum; it has recalibrated the internal power dynamics of the ruling party. While the 45-year-old Bihar minister’s elevation is being hailed as a masterstroke in generational transition, it has simultaneously cast a shadow over the national...

Bihar’s huge gain, Maharashtra’s pause

Shadow cast over the national trajectories of several heavyweights including Fadnavis Mumbai: The sudden appointment of Nitin Nabin as the BJP’s national Working National President on December 14, 2025, has done more than just fill a leadership vacuum; it has recalibrated the internal power dynamics of the ruling party. While the 45-year-old Bihar minister’s elevation is being hailed as a masterstroke in generational transition, it has simultaneously cast a shadow over the national trajectories of several heavyweights, most notably from Maharashtra. Nabin, a five-term MLA and a seasoned organisational hand, represents the “new guard” that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have spent years cultivating. By choosing a leader from Bihar—a state where the BJP is looking to fill a leadership void as ally Nitish Kumar nears the twilight of his career—the high command has signaled that the path to the top is reserved for those under 55 with deep grassroots roots. However, this “Bihar first” strategy has created an unexpected bottleneck for Maharashtra’s most prominent national aspirants. Block Fadnavis Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has long been the subject of “Delhi-bound” rumours. Despite his public assertions that he will remain in Maharashtra until 2029, insiders suggest his national ambitions were a poorly kept secret. Nabin’s appointment complicates this path significantly. At 55, Fadnavis is ten years Nabin’s senior. With Nabin now positioned to transition into the full-time President role by early 2026, the organisational “Top Spot” is effectively occupied for the foreseeable future. For Fadnavis, entering the national arena now means competing in a space where the leadership has already signaled a preference for younger, non-entrenched faces. “The appointment of a 45-year-old sends a message that the party isn’t just looking for experience; it’s looking for a long political runway,” noted a senior BJP strategist. Another senior BJP leader from Bihar highlighted the “Low Key” factor that might have helped Nabin in being elevated to the top slot. Another analyst said that the appointment of Nabin also suggests that the BJP leadership is unlikely to pay heed to the insistence from the RSS while devising the succession strategy within the party and in the government. This factor too goes against Fadnavis, the analyst feels. Waiting Game Another leader feeling the squeeze is BJP National General Secretary Vinod Tawde. Known as a prolific “troubleshooter” in Delhi, speculation was rife that a cabinet reshuffle would see Tawde move from the organisation to a ministerial post. Instead, the elevation of a younger leader to the Working Presidency suggests the “organisational refresh” may keep current secretaries in their administrative roles longer than anticipated. For Tawde, who successfully navigated from state-level sidelines to national relevance, the prospect of a high-profile cabinet berth now appears to be a “distant dream” in the current reshuffle cycle. The “Nabin Era” marks a departure from the traditional seniority-based hierarchy. Those hailing the feat as a masterstroke say that the BJP leadership has achieved multiple goals like neutralising factions and forced recalibration by promoting a leader who was not on the typical media “shortlist”. In Nabin’s appointment the BJP central leadership has bypassed the traditional power centers of Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh and pushed leaders like Fadnavis and Tawde to double down on their current roles rather than looking toward the capital, they say. As the party prepares for its plenary session in January 2026, the message to the rank and file is clear that the national arena is no longer a natural progression for state stalwarts, but a field of high-stakes, unpredictable selection.

BMC auctioning three land parcels to raise funds, says Aaditya

Updated: Oct 22, 2024

Aaditya

Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Thursday alleged Mumbai’s civic body had decided to auction three land parcels to raise funds and make up for the “loot” of the metropolis by the Eknath Shinde government.


The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, which is being run by an administrator now, has decided to auction the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Mandi (Market), the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) Malabar Hill Receiving Station and the Worli Asphalt Plant, Thackeray pointed out.


“The sale of Mumbai is being done by the Eknath Shinde regime to benefit its favourite builders and contractors,” he alleged.


A criminal investigation will be conducted into the matter after the Maha Vikas Aghadi government comes to power, Thackeray added.


“So on one end, they looted the BMC and Mumbai and gave the money to their favourite contractors. Now, by auctioning these iconic and important land parcels, the BMC will be left without both funds and plots,” the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and former state minister claimed.


When Shiv Sena started controlling the BMC in 1997, its finances were in deficit but by 2022 his party turned around the fiscal health of the civic body, Thackeray said.


Alleging that the Shinde government wants to drive Kolis and fisherfolk out of Mumbai, he said, “We will oppose this. It has to remain and be made into a fish market, and (should be) in the ownership of the BMC.”

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Aaditya puppet for urban naxals: Shelar

Bharatiya Janata Party ( BJP ) Mumbai chief Ashish Shelar has called Uddhav Thackeray’s son and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray as a puppet for urban naxals after former’s comments on the Dharavi Redevelopment project and has also challenged him for a debate.

Ashish Shelar said that the project is a necessity and a priority project, adding that Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena and Congressleader Varsha Gaikwad are peddling lies.

Aaditya Thackeray seems to have become the spokesperson of urban Naxals. Without studying the subject (Dharavi) in detail, Aaditya Thackeray is speaking like an ignorant. I have seen that these people have been trying to set a narrative regarding Dharavi and the re-development work,” Ashish Shelar said.

He challenged Aaditya Thackeray and Varsha Gaikwad in a debate on the Dharavi Redevelopment Project.

“Uddhav ji and the people of his party – Aaditya Thackeray and Varsha Gaikwad have started this false narrative regarding Dharavi. I openly challenge Aaditya for a debate. I want to ask him that 70 per cent of the homes in the Dharavi Redevelopment Project will go to Marathi people, Muslims and Dalits. It is their rightful home, so why are they putting roadblocks by creating a false narrative?”

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