Ticket-seekers unleash chaos, confusion and mayhem Mumbai: The last day of filing nominations for Maharashtra’s first civic body elections since 2017 erupted into chaos, rebellion and high political drama across major urban centres, exposing deep fissures within almost every major political party. From Mumbai to Thane, Navi Mumbai, Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Nagpur, Nashik, Amravati and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, thousands of hopefuls denied tickets turned their rage inward - targeting party leaderships - in scenes rarely witnessed even during Assembly or Lok Sabha elections. Massive uproar, slogan-shouting, heated confrontations or near-fisticuffs with local office-bearers, open threats of sabotage and dramatic last-minute defections marked the day when nomination filings closed across the state. In several cities, frustrated workers laid siege to party offices and leaders’ residences, while others accused their own parties of nepotism, favouritism and even ticket “auctioning” for a staggering Rs 2-crore. Shaken by the ugly mood of the grassroots cadres, local leaders in some civic bodies were forced to distribute AB forms secretly, with candidates reportedly summoned in the dead of night to avoid backlash. The unrest cut across party and ideological lines but seemed more vicious within the MahaYuti constituents - the BJP and the Shiv Sena - and also the Nationalist Congress Party, which is contesting outside the alliance in several civic bodies. A senior Congress leader from Pune described the unprecedented turbulence as a sign of “extraordinary political stakes” attached to local body control, noting that such upheaval was absent even during state Assembly or Parliament elections. With civic bodies commanding massive budgets, local patronage networks and organisational control ahead of future Assembly battles, the denial of tickets triggered raw anger among field workers feeling sidelined in favour of family members, defectors and controversial figures, while their parties bedded with strange allies. Goons, dons, gangsters poised to be civic Big Daddies ! Pune: Raising eyebrows, the NCP has fielded Jayshree Marne, wife of jailed local don Gajanan Marne - who was part of the police’s ‘Black Parade’ along with many other criminals and goons in Feb. 2024. Boasting Marne’s clout, his pictures with ex-CM Eknath Shinde and Parth (Ajit) Pawar in early 2024 had created a huge political storm. The NCP has also given tickets to 3 prime accused in the sensational murder of an ex-corporator Vanraj Andekar in Sep. 2024. They are: Bandu Andekar, Laxmi Andekar and Sonali Andekar, who were granted special court permission to file their nomination papers amid tight police security. Mumbai: In Mumbai, accusations of dynastic politics flew thick and fast. The BJP faced embarrassment after Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar’s family members - his brother Makarand Narvekar, sister-in-law Harshita Narvekar and cousin Gauravi Shivalkar-Narvekar - secured tickets. There were red faces even in the NCP when multiple members of the Nawab Malik family – his brother Kaptan Malik, Bushra Malik and Saeeda Khan-Malik – got tickets. The Shiv Sena (UBT) witnessed a mini-rebellion in its traditional strongholds of Worli and Mahim. Angered aspirants laid siege to ex-CM Uddhav Thackeray’s residence ‘Matoshree’ in Bandra. Several former corporators, Shakha Pramukhs and office-bearers have reportedly resigned, though there is no official confirmation. A miffed Union Minister and RPI(A) President Ramdas Athawale also called up CM Devendra Fadnavis to express displeasure over getting a raw deal in the ticket distribution despite remaining loyal to the NDA for over a decade. Parties cower over retaliation Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: In a dramatic development, the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance collapsed at the last minute. A BJP worker attempted self-immolation by dousing himself with petrol but was stopped by police. Dejected activists stormed the BJP office, openly slamming local leaders. Women aspirants were seen crying, shouting and collapsing from exhaustion. Denied a BJP ticket, ex-deputy mayor Lata Shinde crossed over to the Shiv Sena and was immediately rewarded with a nomination. After allegations were hurled that tickets were “auctioned” for up to Rs 2-cr, Minister Girish Mahajan promised an investigation. Nagpur: The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance between Congress-NCP (SP) collapsed after barely 15 minutes of negotiations! NCP (SP) leader Anil Deshmukh accused Congress of betrayal and later, his colleague Duneshwar S. Pethe claimed that the Congress back-stabbing will benefit the BJP, triggering sharp counter-allegations of “treachery” from Congress leaders. Thane, Amravati, Nashik: Shiv Sena workers created ruckus in Amravati and Pune, while similar scenes unfolded in Thane, Nashik and several other cities. Unconfirmed reports suggest the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance has collapsed in at least 15-17 civic bodies, setting the stage for direct contests between allies-turned-rivals.
Comments