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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.

NCP (SP) bags the best deal in MVA

WITH 85 SEATS AND A FEW MORE FOR ITS SMALLER ALLIES, THE NCP (SP) HAS BAGGED A CHUNK OF THE PIE


MVA

Mumbai: The leader must get the best of the pie. And that’s exactly what Sharad Pawar has managed to get for his party. As the bitterly fought seat sharing talks come to a close, it is clear that the NCP (SP) has walked away with the best deal. Amidst hard negotiations, the three parties have agreed to a seat quota of 85 constituencies for each with another 15 being re-negotiated. The NCP (SP) seems to have cornered constituencies that are crucial for its consolidation and growth. The party, using its top boss’ contacts and friendships across politicians and parties, has roped in local strongmen particularly from western Maharashtra and Marathwada, it’s focus areas, leaving regions such as Vidarbha and Mumbai and Thane to the other constituents.


Party members were expecting around 75 to a maximum of 80 seats going by the strength of the parties and the winnability factor of the candidates. But Pawar has managed to rope in key leaders and regional strongmen, boosting his party’s chances at winning. The influx of leaders from the BJP and Ajit Pawar’s faction of the NCP from western Maharashtra and Nanded and Beed put the NCP (SP) in a higher position than its allies. Whether its Harshvardhan Patil, Laxman Dhoble or the influential Ghatge, Mohite-Patil and Naik-Nimbalkar families, these political leaders have upped the various candidates winnability. “It’s all about who can get the maximum turnout and we now stand a good chance given that our existing leaders and the new ones who have joined, all wield considerable clout in their respective regions,” says an NCP (SP) member.


This turnaround comes a year after the NCP was split by Ajit Pawar who walked away with legislators and party workers. Despite having lost the symbol and party name, the NCP (SP) aced the Lok Sabha elections with a strike rate of 80 percent. Now, three months later, the party has managed to snatch the best deal in the seat sharing arrangement within the MVA with the Congress getting the hardest hit. “We negotiated hard but gave in in the interests of the alliance staying intact. However, it’s not yet done; we will bargain for more seats in Vidarbha and Mumbai but our competitor here is Uddhav Thackeray and not Sharad Pawar,” says a Congress leader.


The seats secured by the NCP (SP) are crucial for the party which sees the sugar and milk belt of western Maharashtra as its bastion from the early days of Pawar’s political career. The seats set aside for the MVA’s alliance partners, too, are a result of Pawar’s good relations with these allies. Making the most of an adverse situation is a lesson that can be well learnt from Pawar. Even as the MVA formed the government in 2019, the undivided NCP bagged the maximum number and the most influential portfolios in the cabinet.


The NCP had taken 12 cabinet positions with portfolios linked to rural politics such as water resources, cooperation and rural development, apart from the key home and finance departments. Even now, the ‘architect’ of the MVA has managed to get a chunk of the pie for his party.

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