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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.

Marathi Mandate

The Maharashtra government has taken a commendable step to promote its native language. The Mahayuti administration’s recent directive making Marathi compulsory for all government, semi-government and local self-government offices, as well as state-run corporations and aided institutions is an ambitious effort to elevate Marathi’s role in public administration and governance. Officials will be required to use Marathi with visitors, excepting foreigners and non-Marathi speakers. Keyboards must include Marathi Devanagari script, with penalties for non-compliance.


The directive transcends the confines of the mere symbolism and extends to advertisements, official correspondence, tenders and notices - all of which must now be issued exclusively in Marathi. Even central government offices operating in Maharashtra are expected to comply, with signboards, application forms, and websites to be trilingual under the Centre’s policy, but with Marathi taking precedence.


In theory, this move should bolster the language’s prestige and ensure greater accessibility for the state’s citizens. In practice, however, its effectiveness will depend on its implementation and the clarity of communication. If executed well, this could be a model for linguistic policies in multilingual societies. If done poorly, it risks becoming yet another bureaucratic edict that is ignored.


Official correspondence between departments has historically been conducted in English, and key policy decisions have been documented in it. The result has been a linguistic disconnect between the government and large sections of the population. While English remains indispensable in global commerce and higher education, making governance more accessible in Marathi in Maharashtra should be the goal every government strives for.


Mere compulsion is not enough. If Marathi is to be the primary language of administration, it must be used in a manner that is clear and simple. A heavy reliance on bureaucratic jargon will only alienate citizens rather than empower them. In the past, the use of highly Sanskritised Marathi in legal and administrative documents has made comprehension difficult even for native speakers. To be truly effective, the government must ensure that official communication is in a language that people can understand, rather than one that is so formal that it feels foreign.


The government has framed this as part of a broader Marathi Language Policy, aiming to establish Marathi as the language of knowledge and employment over the next 25 years. But the challenge remains for a linguistic mandate to translate into meaningful change.


By mandating Marathi in governance, Maharashtra has taken a decisive step in reinforcing its linguistic heritage. The key now is to implement this directive pragmatically, ensuring that the language of administration is one that truly serves the people and not one that turns into yet another bureaucratic obstacle.

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