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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 11:29:11 am

Shinde dilutes demand

Likely to be content with Deputy Mayor’s post in Mumbai Mumbai: In a decisive shift that redraws the power dynamics of Maharashtra’s urban politics, the standoff over the prestigious Mumbai Mayor’s post has ended with a strategic compromise. Following days of resort politics and intense backroom negotiations, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has reportedly diluted its demand for the top job in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), settling instead for the Deputy Mayor’s post. This...

Shinde dilutes demand

Likely to be content with Deputy Mayor’s post in Mumbai Mumbai: In a decisive shift that redraws the power dynamics of Maharashtra’s urban politics, the standoff over the prestigious Mumbai Mayor’s post has ended with a strategic compromise. Following days of resort politics and intense backroom negotiations, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has reportedly diluted its demand for the top job in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), settling instead for the Deputy Mayor’s post. This development, confirmed by high-ranking party insiders, follows the realization that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) effectively ceded its claims on the Kalyan-Dombivali Municipal Corporation (KDMC) to protect the alliance, facilitating a “Mumbai for BJP, Kalyan for Shinde” power-sharing formula. The compromise marks a complete role reversal between the BJP and the Shiv Sena. Both the political parties were in alliance with each other for over 25 years before 2017 civic polls. Back then the BJP used to get the post of Deputy Mayor while the Shiv Sena always enjoyed the mayor’s position. In 2017 a surging BJP (82 seats) had paused its aggression to support the undivided Shiv Sena (84 seats), preferring to be out of power in the Corporation to keep the saffron alliance intact. Today, the numbers dictate a different reality. In the recently concluded elections BJP emerged as the single largest party in Mumbai with 89 seats, while the Shinde faction secured 29. Although the Shinde faction acted as the “kingmaker”—pushing the alliance past the majority mark of 114—the sheer numerical gap made their claim to the mayor’s post untenable in the long run. KDMC Factor The catalyst for this truce lies 40 kilometers north of Mumbai in Kalyan-Dombivali, a region considered the impregnable fortress of Eknath Shinde and his son, MP Shrikant Shinde. While the BJP performed exceptionally well in KDMC, winning 50 seats compared to the Shinde faction’s 53, the lotter for the reservation of mayor’s post in KDMC turned the tables decisively in favor of Shiv Sena there. In the lottery, the KDMC mayor’ post went to be reserved for the Scheduled Tribe candidate. The BJP doesn’t have any such candidate among elected corporatros in KDMC. This cleared the way for Shiv Sena. Also, the Shiv Sena tied hands with the MNS in the corporation effectively weakening the Shiv Sena (UBT)’s alliance with them. Party insiders suggest that once it became clear the BJP would not pursue the KDMC Mayor’s chair—effectively acknowledging it as Shinde’s fiefdom—he agreed to scale down his demands in the capital. “We have practically no hope of installing a BJP Mayor in Kalyan-Dombivali without shattering the alliance locally,” a Mumbai BJP secretary admitted and added, “Letting the KDMC become Shinde’s home turf is the price for securing the Mumbai Mayor’s bungalow for a BJP corporator for the first time in history.” The formal elections for the Mayoral posts are scheduled for later this month. While the opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA)—led by the Shiv Sena (UBT)—has vowed to field candidates, the arithmetic heavily favors the ruling alliance. For Eknath Shinde, accepting the Deputy Mayor’s post in Mumbai is a tactical retreat. It allows him to consolidate his power in the MMR belt (Thane and Kalyan) while remaining a partner in Mumbai’s governance. For the BJP, this is a crowning moment; after playing second fiddle in the BMC for decades, they are poised to finally install their own “First Citizen” of Mumbai.

Cash for votes: FIR against Tawde

Tawde

Mumbai: The police on Tuesday registered a case against BJP general secretary Vinod Tawde and party candidate Rajan Naik in connection with the alleged distribution of cash to voters at a hotel in Palghar.


Hours before the Assembly polls, BVA leader Hitendra Thakur accused Tawde of distributing Rs 5 crore at a hotel in Virar to woo voters, a claim the BJP leader denied, saying he was only providing guidance to party workers on poll procedures.


A viral video showed BVA party supporters barging into the Virar hotel room and flinging bundles of cash at Tawde’s face before police escorted him out.

Based on a complaint lodged by the Election Commission, the Mira Bhayander-Vasai Virar (MBVV) police registered a first information report against Tawde and Rajan Naik, who is contesting the polls from the Nallasopara seat.


The deputy commissioner of police MBVV said, ‘They are taking action against whatever happened in the hotel. The press conference held on the premises was also illegal. We will take action as per law.’


After a ruckus of over three hours at the hotel, Hitendra Thakur, his son Kshitij, Tawde, and BJP candidate Naik decided to hold a press conference at the hotel. However, as the press conference started, it was stopped by poll officials stating it was illegal.


“I was informed by a BJP leader that he (Tawde) has come to distribute this huge cash. I could not believe that such a key national functionary of that party will do so, but sadly it turned out to be true,” Thakur told a Marathi news channel. “In the hotel today, cash, diaries and laptops (related to the alleged cash distribution) were recovered. The diaries mentioned names and the amount given to them,” Thakur said.


Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray took a “note jihad” jibe over claims of Tawde distributing money hours before voting for the Maharashtra assembly elections.


“Is this BJP’s note jihad (for votes)? ‘Baatenge aur jitenge’ (will distribute cash to win). Entire Maharashtra has seen it (a video showing bundles of cash). Maharashtra will decide tomorrow,” Thackeray told reporters.


“Tawde was lauded for toppling governments in some states and helping to form new ones. Now the secret behind this has come out in the open,” Thackeray said.


Rs 9.93 lakh recovered

The district authorities in Palghar on Tuesday said that a police team comprising senior officials recovered Rs 9.93 lakh cash and some incriminating documents from the hotel.


District collector and election officer Govind Bodke said the election department received complaints from BVA activists that some BJP workers were distributing cash at a hotel in Virar.


The collector, in a recorded message, confirmed that cases were registered for offences, including possession of cash, violation of the model code of conduct, and holding illegal press conferences.


The BJP rejected the allegation of distribution of cash to voters by one of its senior leaders in Maharashtra’s Palghar, claiming the opposition camp is trying to influence the election with such “absurd” accusations sensing defeat in the state assembly polls.


BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi termed Thakur’s allegation as “laughable, baseless and absurd”, and alleged that the opposition camp is making such an accusation out of “frustration and despair” sensing their imminent defeat.


Charges ‘baseless’: Tawde; wants EC to conduct impartial probe

Vinod Tawde called the charges against him as “baseless”, and urged the Election Commission to conduct an impartial probe into the matter.

He said there was no question of him distributing money to voters, and claimed that he was only discussing election-related issues with the party workers.


In his statement Tawde said his visit to the hotel was for a casual meeting with BJP candidate Rajan Naik. “While returning to Mumbai from Wada (in Palghar), I received a call from Rajan Naik who invited me for tea at a hotel in Vasai where party workers had assembled. After I reached the place, we naturally discussed election-related matters, particularly technical processes for polling day and precautions to take.


Suddenly, some workers from another party entered and surrounded me, shouting loudly. I later learned they were from the Bahujan Vikas Aghadi (BVA).”


Tawde said he then called BVA chief Hitendra Thakur, urging him to control the situation. “I contacted Hitendra Thakur and requested him to restrain his party workers. Both he and (BVA) MLA Kshitij Thakur arrived at the hotel. After a brief discussion, I left with them in the same vehicle to defuse tension,” he said. Tawde said, “There is no question of me distributing money. I was merely meeting our workers over tea and discussing election-related issues. These allegations are baseless.”

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