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New Delhi: Even before a single vote is cast in Maharashtra's long-pending municipal corporation elections, the BJP–Shiv Sena alliance has secured victories in 66 wards, while Ajit Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has won two seats unopposed.
Friday was the last day for withdrawal of nomination papers, and candidates from rival parties and alliances pulled out from several wards, clearing the way for 68 candidates to be declared elected without a contest.
The largest number of unopposed wins came from the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), where 21 Mahayuti candidates were elected unopposed. Of these, 15 belong to the BJP and six to the Shiv Sena.
In north Maharashtra, Jalgaon emerged as politically significant for both the BJP and the Shiv Sena, with each party securing six unopposed victories, taking the total to 12 seats. A similar trend was seen in Panvel in the MMR, where seven BJP candidates were elected unopposed.
The BJP also registered six uncontested wins in Bhiwandi, a region that has traditionally been considered a stronghold of the Sharad Pawar-led NCP faction. In Thane, despite visible differences between the BJP and deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena, the party managed to win six seats unopposed. Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) staged protests in the district, questioning the process and conduct of the ruling government.
Smaller but politically significant gains were recorded elsewhere. In Dhule, three BJP candidates were elected unopposed. In Ahilya Nagar, the NCP secured two seats, while the BJP won one seat without contest.
