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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.

Uddhav keeps doors open for MNS

Mumbai: Former chief minister and Shiv Sena (UBT) President Uddhav Thackeray gave a clear sign that he was open to an alliance with his cousin and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray – who is reportedly being wooed by the ruling Mahayuti constituents.


Addressing the much-anticipated 59th anniversary of the (undivided) party founded by the late Balasaheb Thackeray on this day in 1966, Uddhav declared that “we shall decide as per the desires of the Marathi people” on the much-debated issue of the two cousins joining hands.


“This has already scared many… But we shall decide as per what’s in the minds of the Marathi people,” declared Uddhav amidst a thunderous applause at the Shanmukhananda Hall on Thursday.


He warned that attempts were underway to erase the ‘Thackeray brand’ from Maharashtra politics but they would never succeed.


Mouthing a dialogue of actor Nana Patekar from the Hindi blockbuster ‘Prahaar’ (1991) – “Come on kill me”, Uddhav dared both Fadnavis and Shiv Sena chief Shinde and others attempting to finish off the Thackeray name to ‘come and kill me’ and he would teach a lesson to them.


“They are scared about Marathi people uniting to pose a challenge to Mumbai’s owner (Adani Group). To thwart that, they go and meet in hotels and other places. They worry what will happen to the ‘owner’ if Mumbai comes back to the Marathis… But we shall do what the people of the state want,” asserted Uddhav, keeping an open mind over the tie-up with MNS’ Raj Thackeray.


Training guns at the PM, central ministers Amit Shah or Rajnath Singh, Uddhav said that “the country needs a PM and a Home Minister… as this PM (Modi) and HM (Shah) are only for their party”.


“When we united as the INDIA bloc, you compared us with the Indian Mujahideen. Didn’t you feel ashamed…? What are you… You have made enemies within and outside India. When you wanted to inform the world on Operation Sindoor, why did you fall back on the Opposition MPs. But we stood solidly behind you during a national crisis, we are ready to make any sacrifices for the country,” he said.


He pointed that when (US President) Donald Trump stopped the war, Modi and Shah lost their voice, and asked where the (Pahalgam) terrorists fled after committing the massacre of tourists, ‘whether in the sky or the netherworld’, and how they managed to reach there in the first place.


Targeting Shinde, he said that there’s a ‘chor bazaar’ which stole the (undivided) Shiv Sena party, its symbol and his father (Balasaheb), yet they could not destroy the party built with the blood of Shiv Sainiks.

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