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By:

Naresh Kamath

5 November 2024 at 5:30:38 am

Battle royale at Prabhadevi-Mahim belt

Amidst cut-throat competition, five seats up for grabs Mumbai: South Central Mumbai’s Prabhadevi-Mahim belt, an epicentre of Mumbai’s politics, promises a cut-throat competition as the two combines – Mahayuti and the Shiv Sena (UBT)-Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) combine – sweat it out in the upcoming BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls. It is the same ward where Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray used to address mammoth rallies at Shivaji Park and also the residence of MNS chief...

Battle royale at Prabhadevi-Mahim belt

Amidst cut-throat competition, five seats up for grabs Mumbai: South Central Mumbai’s Prabhadevi-Mahim belt, an epicentre of Mumbai’s politics, promises a cut-throat competition as the two combines – Mahayuti and the Shiv Sena (UBT)-Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) combine – sweat it out in the upcoming BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls. It is the same ward where Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray used to address mammoth rallies at Shivaji Park and also the residence of MNS chief Raj Thackeray. This belt has five wards and boasts of famous landmarks like the Siddhivinayak temple, Mahim Dargah and Mahim Church, and Chaityabhoomi, along with the Sena Bhavan, the headquarters of Shiv Sena (UBT) combine. This belt is dominated by the Maharashtrians, and hence the Shiv Sena (UBT)-MNS has been vocal about upholding the Marathi pride. This narrative is being challenged by Shiv Sena (Shinde) leader Sada Sarvankar, who is at the front. In fact, Sada has fielded both his children Samadhan and Priya, from two of these five wards. Take the case of Ward number 192, where the MNS has fielded Yeshwant Killedar, who was the first MNS candidate announced by its chief, Raj Thackeray. This announcement created a controversy as former Shiv Sena (UBT) corporator Priti Patankar overnight jumped to the Eknath Shinde camp and secured a ticket. This raised heckles among the existing Shiv Sena (Shinde) loyalists who raised objections. “We worked hard for the party for years, and here Priti has been thrust on us. My name was considered till the last moment, and overnight everything changed,” rued Kunal Wadekar, a Sada Sarvankar loyalist. ‘Dadar Neglected’ Killedar said that Dadar has been neglected for years. “The people in chawls don’t get proper water supply, and traffic is in doldrums,” said Killadar. Ward number 191 Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Vishaka Raut, former Mumbai mayor, is locked in a tough fight against Priya Sarvankar, who is fighting on the Shiv Sena (Shinde) ticket. Priya’s brother Samadhan is fighting for his second term from neighbouring ward 194 against Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Nishikant Shinde. Nishikant is the brother of legislator Sunil Shinde, a popular figure in this belt who vacated his Worli seat to accommodate Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray. Sada Sarvankar exudes confidence that both his children will be victorious. “Samadhan has served the people with all his dedication so much that he put his life at stake during the Covid-19 epidemic,” said Sada. “Priya has worked very hard for years and has secured this seat on merit. She will win, as people want a fresh face who will redress their grievances, as Vishaka Raut has been ineffective,” he added. He says the Mahayuti will Ward number 190 is the only ward where the BJP was the winner last term (2017) in this area, and the party has once nominated its candidate, Sheetal Gambhir Desai. Sheetal is being challenged by Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Vaishali Patankar. Sheetal vouches for the BJP, saying it’s time to replace the Shiv Sena (UBT) from the BMC. “They did nothing in the last 25 years, and people should now give a chance to the BJP,” said Sheetal. Incidentally, Sheetal is the daughter of Suresh Gambhir, a hardcore Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray loyalist, who has been a Mahim legislator for 4 terms and even won the 1985 BMC with the highest margin in Mumbai. In the neighbouring ward number 182, Shiv Sena (UBT) has given a ticket to former mayor and veteran corporator Milind Vaidya. He is being challenged by BJP candidate Rajan Parkar. Like the rest of Mumbai, this belt is also plagued by inadequate infrastructure to support the large-scale redevelopment projects. The traffic is in the doldrums, especially due to the closure of the Elphinstone bridge. There are thousands of old buildings and chawls which are in an extremely dilapidated state. The belt is significant, as top leaders like Manohar Joshi, Diwakar Raote and Suresh Gambhir have dominated local politics for years. In fact, Shiv Sena party’s first Chief Minister, Manohar Joshi, hailed from this belt.

Certificate Calculus

The Maharashtra government’s decision to launch a revised Occupancy Certificate (OC) amnesty scheme is, on its face, a long-overdue step toward bringing order to Mumbai’s urban landscape. Announced by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in the Legislative Assembly, the initiative aims to regularise nearly 20,000 buildings that have gone without OCs for years owing to minor deviations from their approved plans. More than 10 lakh residents - many of whom have paid double property tax, higher water charges and inflated sewerage fees - stand to benefit.


The absence of an OC can trap homeowners in a cycle of financial and legal vulnerability: resale values dip, access to home loans becomes difficult, and even routine redevelopment turns into a labyrinth of restrictions. Hospitals and schools caught in the category of ‘unauthorised constructions’ remain unable to expand or upgrade. A city that prides itself on being India’s financial nerve centre has long lived with regulatory gaps that would be unthinkable in most global business capitals.


The new scheme offers welcome clarity. Buildings constructed under the Development Control Regulations of the BMC, as well as those under MHADA, the SRA and other planning authorities, will be eligible. Proposals filed within the first six months will enjoy complete waiver of penalties. Those filed between six months and a year will face a 50 percent penalty. Societies applying for regularisation will receive a 50 percent concession on premiums, assessed on ready reckoner rates - a significant relief for structures struggling with compliance. In a notable innovation, even individual flat owners may apply independently for an OC, enabling residents in large societies to resolve long-standing issues without being held hostage by internal disagreements. The scheme is to be eventually be implemented in other municipal corporations across Maharashtra, creating a uniform regulatory framework.


All said, the timing of this announcement difficult to ignore. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation - Asia’s richest civic body and the political jewel of Maharashtra - is set for elections. For the ruling Mahayuti coalition led by Devendra Fadnavis, regaining control of the BMC is both a political necessity and a strategic ambition to wrest it from the Thackeray clan, which had controlled the corporation for over two decades and remains a formidable presence in Mumbai’s civic politics. Measures that promise direct relief to more than 2.5 lakh families are bound to have electoral implications.


Governments often push through popular reforms in the run-up to elections. In Mumbai, where urban planning has long been a patchwork of improvisations, stalled projects and regulatory contradictions, any serious attempt at regularisation is welcome. But it is also true that the city’s governance tends to quicken only when the BMC’s vast resources and its electoral significance are at stake.


The revised OC scheme may well resolve hundreds of disputes that have festered for years. But it also serves as a reminder that policy momentum in Mumbai occurs only when the political stakes are the highest.

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