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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.

Challenge is employment for the youth

Deepak Kesarkar

In the past two years, Deepak Kesarkar has donned many hats as Guardian Minister of the metropolis of Mumbai, a legislator from the largely rural and agrarian region of Sawantwadi-Vengurla in Sindhudurg, a key leader of the Shiv Sena post the split and a minister for school education.


The roles have been diverse and the targets have been varied—from incorporating the CBSE syllabus in the state board curriculum and signing an employment contract with the German state of Baden-Württemberg to working on giving subsidies for mango processing. In the midst of ‘corner sabhas’ in his constituency, he talks about the reforms he has worked on and his vision for bringing employment to the youth of Maharashtra and prosperity to Sindhudurg.


Q. Sindhudurg is the first ‘tourism district’ in India and it’s potential still needs to be tapped. What is your development plan for Sindhudurg?

A: Development in Sindhudurg must be in tandem with preserving its natural resources. My thought process is that I want to double the per capita income of my people by working with this natural wealth and protecting the environment. That’s how we came up with the Chanda te Banda scheme. Sindhudurg has the most beautiful and abundant natural resources that are unmatched by any other region in our state. We have white sand beaches, a large part of Maharashtra’s 700 km coastline, the best fish, rich ecological diversity in our forests and we are the leading producers of cashew and coconut and next only to Ratnagiri in Alfonso mango cultivation. We have gorgeous corals which makes scuba diving a memorable activity. In fact, we are the leading district in Maharashtra for water sports and scuba diving. Our region needs a push in agriculture, sustainable tourism, food processing, all while preserving our natural environment.


Q. What is your vision for Maharashtra?

A. For me, one of the biggest challenges facing our state is lack of employment opportunities for our youth and making the youth employment-ready. Towards this, I have signed a contract with Baden-Württemberg in Germany, the sister-state of Maharashtra for several years now. Under this, four lakh youth will be trained and will get employment in Germany. The salaries that these young men and women will get are also much higher than what they’d get here. For instance, a person who will be paid Rs 20000 in Maharashtra, will earn Rs 3 lakh in Germany. Even if we send one lakh people, can you imagine how big the remittance economy will be. . We have signed contracts in the sectors of industries, start-ups and education. It’s the first such state-to-state agreement. We’ve also done a contract with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences to provide training employment after Class 12


Q. Which ministry would you like to work with next?

A. A ministry that gives me an opportunity to bring prosperity to Konkan. And there are several that are connected—salt pans or fisheries are very nuanced subjects and departments which are best understood by a person from Konkan. Horticulture is closely connected with this region just as agriculture, tourism and environment also are connected with Sindhudurg.

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