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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.

Digital Terror

Digital Terror

India’s urban centers are increasingly being rattled by operations of cybercriminals who, equipped with a few scripts and well-crafted impersonations, are upending lives of unsuspecting citizens. This plague, dubbed ‘digital arrest’ scams, is luring individuals into webs of deception through sheer manipulation, stripping them of their savings and their sense of security. Mumbai, Pune, and Hyderabad - cities synonymous with India’s economic and technological prowess - have become primary hunting grounds for these fraudsters.


The recent case of a Hyderabad tech worker, who was held virtually hostage by fraudsters claiming to be Mumbai police, paints a chilling portrait of this new wave of cybercrime. Starting with a pre-dawn call and fictitious accusations of money laundering, these scammers wove a narrative so persuasive that the victim remained on the phone with them continuously for over 24 hours, following instructions to stay hidden. Fake arrest warrants, police documents, and threats were all meticulously deployed to achieve a single aim: siphoning off his savings. It was only a technical glitch in the continuous call that finally freed him from this ordeal - an accidental liberation that could have ended far more tragically. His decision to reach out to local cybercrime authorities averted a financial loss, but the experience left scars nonetheless.


Another high-profile scam involving a 67-year-old woman in Mumbai serves as a grim reminder that age and experience offer no immunity against sophisticated cyber criminals. Posing as government telecom officials, fraudsters threatened her with jail using fake legal documents, ultimately coercing her into liquidating Rs. 14 lakh and transferring it to their account.


Perhaps no scam is as notorious as the Jamtara phishing racket, which claimed crores from unsuspecting citizens across the nation. The perpetrators of these scams had posed as bank officials or customer service agents, requesting critical details from victims under the guise of account verification.


‘Digital arrests’ are only one of many tools in the scammers’ kit. The Computer Emergency Response Team of India reports an explosion in such tactics, where scammers make a living out of fear, ignorance and a fragmented policing system. The psychological manipulation is no accident; criminals deliberately create a sense of urgency, knowing that it impedes rational thinking.


Despite CERT-In’s extensive advisories and awareness programs, the fragmented response among various state agencies has stymied efforts. High-profile cases tend to gain police attention, but countless smaller cases go unreported or are dismissed, with victims often embarrassed or unsure about the legitimacy of their grievances. India must view cybercrime as the new frontier of public safety. Our cities will continue to grow, as will the wealth and data held within them. As digital scams become a fixture in our cities, the response cannot afford to lag. Cybersecurity is not only about preventing crime but about safeguarding citizens’ trust in a digital future.

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