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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Seventy-six mayors ruled BMC since 1931

After four years, Mumbai to salute its first citizen Kishori Pednekar Vishwanath Mahadeshwar Snehal Ambekar Sunil Prabhu Mumbai: As the date for appointing Mumbai’s First Citizen looms closer, various political parties have adopted tough posturing to foist their own person for the coveted post of Mayor – the ‘face’ of the country’s commercial capital. Ruling Mahayuti allies Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena have vowed that the city...

Seventy-six mayors ruled BMC since 1931

After four years, Mumbai to salute its first citizen Kishori Pednekar Vishwanath Mahadeshwar Snehal Ambekar Sunil Prabhu Mumbai: As the date for appointing Mumbai’s First Citizen looms closer, various political parties have adopted tough posturing to foist their own person for the coveted post of Mayor – the ‘face’ of the country’s commercial capital. Ruling Mahayuti allies Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena have vowed that the city will get a ‘Hindu Marathi’ person to head India’s richest civic body, while the Opposition Shiv Sena (UBT)-Maharashtra Navnirman Sena also harbour fond hopes of a miracle that could ensure their own person for the post. The Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) optimism stems from expectations of possible political permutations-combinations that could develop with a realignment of forces as the Supreme Court is hearing the cases involving the Shiv Sena-Nationalist Congress Party this week. Catapulted as the largest single party, the BJP hopes to install a first ever party-man as Mayor, but that may not create history. Way back in 1982-1983, a BJP leader Dr. Prabhakar Pai had served in the top post in Mumbai (then Bombay). Incidentally, Dr. Pai hailed from Udupi district of Karnataka, and his appointment came barely a couple of years after the BJP was formed (1980), capping a distinguished career as a city father, said experts. Originally a Congressman, Dr. Pai later shifted to the Bharatiya Janata Party, then back to Congress briefly, founded the Janata Seva Sangh before immersing himself in social activities. Second Administrator The 2026 Mayoral elections have evoked huge interest not only among Mumbaikars but across the country as it comes after nearly four years since the BMC was governed by an Administrator. This was only the second time in the BMC history that an Administrator was named after April 1984-May 1985. On both occasions, there were election-related issues, the first time the elections got delayed for certain reasons and the second time the polling was put off owing to Ward delimitations and OBC quotas as the matter was pending in the courts. From 1931 till 2022, Mumbai has been lorded over by 76 Mayors, men and women, hailing from various regions, backgrounds, castes and communities. They included Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Parsis, Sikhs, even a Jew, etc., truly reflecting the cosmopolitan personality of the coastal city and India’s financial powerhouse. In 1931-1932, the Mayor was a Parsi, J. B. Boman Behram, and others from his community followed like Khurshed Framji Nariman (after whom Nariman Point is named), E. A. Bandukwala, Minoo Masani, B. N. Karanjia and other bigwigs. There were Muslims like Hoosenally Rahimtoola, Sultan M. Chinoy, the legendary Yusuf Meherally, Dr. A. U. Memon and others. The Christian community got a fair share of Mayors with Joseph A. D’Souza – who was Member of Constituent Assembly representing Bombay Province for writing-approving the Constitution of India, M. U. Mascarenhas, P. A. Dias, Simon C. Fernandes, J. Leon D’Souza, et al. A Jew Elijah Moses (1937-1938) and a Sikh M. H. Bedi (1983-1984), served as Mayors, but post-1985, for the past 40 years, nobody from any minority community occupied the august post. During the silver jubilee year of the post, Sulochana M. Modi became the first woman Mayor of Mumbai (1956), and later with tweaks in the rules, many women ruled in this post – Nirmala Samant-Prabhavalkar (1994-1995), Vishakha Raut (997-1998), Dr. Shubha Raul (March 2007-Nov. 2009), Shraddha Jadhav (Dec. 2009-March 2012), Snehal Ambedkar (Sep. 2014-March 2017). The last incumbent (before the Administrator) was a government nurse, Kishori Pednekar (Nov. 2019-March 2022) - who earned the sobriquet of ‘Florence Nightingale’ of Mumbai - as she flitted around in her full white uniform at the height of the Covid-19 Pandemic, earning the admiration of the citizens. Mumbai Mayor – high-profile post The Mumbai Mayor’s post is considered a crucial step in the political ladder and many went on to become MLAs, MPs, state-central ministers, a Lok Sabha Speaker, Chief Ministers and union ministers. The formidable S. K. Patil was Mayor (1949-1952) and later served in the union cabinets of PMs Jawaharlal Nehru, Lah Bahadur Shastri and Indira Gandhi; Dahyabhai V. Patel (1954-1955) was the son of India’s first Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel; Manohar Joshi (1976-1977) became the CM of Maharashtra, later union minister and Speaker of Lok Sabha; Chhagan Bhujbal (1985-1986 – 1990-1991) became a Deputy CM.

The Battle for Baramati

Striking at the sugarcane roots of power, Ajit Pawar outflanks his uncle in Maharashtra’s cooperative heartland.

Ajit Pawar, Maharashtra’s Deputy Chief Minister and nephew of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) founder Sharad Pawar, has delivered a stinging blow to his uncle’s legacy in Baramati. His faction’s decisive victory in the election to the Malegaon Sugar Mill, once the undisputed bastion of Sharad Pawar’s influence, is a moment loaded with symbolism and consequence. Of the 21 seats on the mill’s board, Ajit Pawar’s panel bagged 20, leaving the elder Pawar’s loyalists with nothing but the bitter taste of defeat.


On paper, this may appear to be a local contest over a single cooperative. In reality, it represents a tectonic shift in Maharashtra’s rural politics. Sugar mills in the state are not mere agro-industrial units; they are nodes of economic patronage, grassroots mobilisation, and political muscle. Control over them offers votes, resources, and the loyalty of thousands of farmer-members. The Pawars have long understood this alchemy.


Located in Baramati, the spiritual centre of the Pawar clan’s influence, the Malegaon mill has always carried outsize significance. It was through such cooperatives that Sharad Pawar built a vast rural base, marrying the mechanics of governance with the rhythms of village life. His genius has been in fusing economic upliftment with political mobilisation with sugar mills, credit societies and educational trusts becoming his levers of influence. That he has now lost grip over one of his strongest outposts suggests not just a temporary reversal, but a generational rupture.


Ajit Pawar, long seen as a sullen understudy in his uncle’s shadow, has slowly but surely been assembling his own power structure. His break from the NCP in July 2023 and subsequent alignment with the BJP and Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena faction marked the beginning of his open defiance. Yet, even those moves could still be dismissed as opportunism. The Malegaon win is different. It suggests that his support is no longer restricted to elected defectors; it now extends to the grassroots where Sharad Pawar once reigned supreme.


Cooperative politics in Maharashtra is the quiet machinery beneath the louder drama of Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. The mills serve not just as sources of employment or revenue but as campaign bases, vote banks, and platforms for patronage. Their board members often go on to become MLAs and MPs. Control of a cooperative means control of a constituency — sometimes more than one.


Ajit Pawar’s clean sweep at Malegaon gives him more than bragging rights. It gives him a lever to expand into neighbouring districts, to fortify his base ahead of upcoming local body elections and to woo fence-sitting leaders and factions. Already, there are reports that influential rural figures, some with long-standing ties to Sharad Pawar, backed Ajit’s panel. In a polity where loyalty is often dictated by proximity to power, the younger Pawar is emerging as the more bankable bet.


Symbolism matters too. That this upset has occurred in Baramati — the crucible of Sharad Pawar’s rise — is not lost on observers. It sends a clear message: Ajit is not just nibbling at the margins anymore, but is now claiming the core.


Still, challenges abound. The affection and deference that Sharad Pawar commands among many rural leaders, especially among the older generation, cannot be overturned overnight. Nor is Ajit’s victory a guarantee of future success. Having seized control, he must now deliver on better mill management, timely payments and cleaner governance. Cooperative members are stakeholders after all, and not just mere voters. Their loyalty comes with expectations.


Ajit must also navigate the tightrope of coalition politics. Too much reliance on the BJP could reduce him to a junior partner; too much autonomy could invite friction with his allies. The balancing act between assertion and accommodation will determine whether he consolidates his gains or squanders them.


Even so, the writing on the wall is becoming legible. In Maharashtra’s complex political grammar, where sugar and credit cooperatives often write the first draft of electoral fortunes, Ajit Pawar has begun scripting a new chapter. His win at Malegaon is a prelude to a longer campaign to inherit and redefine the Pawar legacy.


The road ahead will be fraught with resistance. But if the cooperatives continue to fall his way, Ajit Pawar could well emerge not just as a challenger to his uncle, but as the most consequential leader in Maharashtra’s rural politics in the decade to come. For now, it seems that Baramati is ready to turn the page.

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