Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the next Mayor of Mumbai will be from the ruling alliance and will be 'both Hindu and Marathi,' as political campaigning heats up for the city's top civic post.
The Maharashtra State Election Commission on Friday announced that Thursday, January 15, will be a public holiday in areas falling under the 29 municipal corporations where polling for civic elections will be held, an official said.
Twelve newly-elected councillors in the Ambernath Municipal Council, suspended by the Congress for joining a post-poll front led by the BJP, have formally joined the saffron party. The Congress criticized the BJP, highlighting the hypocrisy of welcoming defectors despite the Chief Minister's disapproval of the alliance.
A dispute has erupted between MVA allies Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress after the Sena (UBT) supported the BJP in the Chandrapur mayoral elections, leading to a BJP victory despite Congress being the single largest party.
The BJP and Shiv Sena are leading in the early trends of the Zilla Parishad and Panchayat Samiti polls in Maharashtra. Counting began on Monday morning for elections to 12 Zilla Parishads and 125 Panchayat Samitis.
Senior NCP (SP) leader Jayant Patil met with Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray to discuss a potential alliance for the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections. The meeting follows an alliance between Uddhav Thackeray and MNS chief Raj Thackeray. Discussions are ongoing, with the NCP (SP) advocating for a united Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) approach.
Maharashtra Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule blames the State Election Commission (SEC) for the Bombay High Court's decision to defer the counting of votes for local bodies polls, citing 'misinterpretation of laws'.
Following a hung result in the Chandrapur Municipal Corporation elections, both the Congress and BJP are claiming they will secure the Mayor's position. Congress emerged as the single largest party, but the BJP claims to have support from Congress corporators.
Security has been beefed up in the area to prevent any law and order issue and deter people from feeding the birds, they said.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) are expected to announce an alliance for the upcoming Mumbai civic elections. The announcement is expected to be made at a press conference on Wednesday.
The Nationalist Congress Party, led by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, and the Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar, headed by his uncle Sharad Pawar, on Saturday released a joint manifesto for the upcoming elections to the Pune municipal corporation.
The Mumbai civic body collected 508 tonnes of 'nirmalya' from natural water bodies and artificial ponds after the Ganesh festival. Akshay Kumar and Amruta Fadnavis participated in a cleanliness drive.
With local body elections approaching in Maharashtra, a significant portion of the Congress party is advocating for contesting independently to regain lost ground amidst the BJP's growing influence. The party is currently part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance.
The BJP and its Mahayuti allies have won 68 seats unopposed in the Maharashtra civic polls scheduled for January 15, even as the Opposition parties alleged the ruling combine used threats and money to force candidates to withdraw from the fray.
The tactical alliance between the Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) may not have aided the Thackeray cousins to win the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, but the pact helped them keep intact their traditional strongholds.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar announced that his party, the NCP, is in discussions with the Shiv Sena regarding seat sharing for the upcoming Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad civic polls. This comes as alliances blur in the state-level elections.
A man in Hyderabad has been arrested for allegedly murdering his pregnant wife and dismembering her body to conceal the crime. Police are investigating the case and searching for the missing body parts.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray demands cancellation of civic elections where candidates won unopposed, alleging corruption and manipulation by ruling parties. He also criticizes the Maharashtra legislative assembly speaker and the misuse of BMC funds.
BJP and Congress workers clashed in Pune following controversial remarks equating Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj with Tipu Sultan, leading to injuries and police intervention.
The Mahayuti alliance has released its manifesto for the upcoming Mumbai civic elections, promising technology-led governance, concessions for women, and addressing issues like illegal immigration and infrastructure.
BJP leader V V Rajesh was elected mayor of Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, marking the party's first-ever victory in a municipal corporation in Kerala. The election saw other mayoral contests across the state, with UDF and LDF also securing victories.
Parties in Maharashtra are engaged in intense negotiations to finalize seat sharing arrangements for the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections scheduled for January 15.
Campaigning for the elections to 29 municipal corporations in Maharashtra has ended, with the battle for Mumbai's BMC taking center stage. Key political players are vying for control, with a focus on Marathi and Hindu voters.
Maharashtra is set to hold local body elections for municipal councils and nagar panchayats, marking the first phase of a Supreme Court-mandated process. The elections are seen as a key indicator of political sentiment following the BJP-led Mahayuti's victory in the assembly elections.
Shinde also emphasised that Mumbai will have a Mahayuti mayor, dismissing reports of new political equations after the results of the civic polls were declared last week.
A fire in two godowns in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district resulted in at least seven deaths and several missing persons. Rescue operations are underway to clear the debris and ascertain the full extent of the tragedy.
The Shiv Sena has shifted its 29 members to a hotel in Mumbai, ostensibly for an orientation workshop to make them aware of the functioning of the country's richest civic body, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.
The Congress-led UDF secured a decisive victory in Kerala's local body elections, dealing a blow to the LDF, while the BJP gained significant ground, including winning control of the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation.
The State Election Commission (SEC) has barred the Maharashtra government from releasing the January instalment of the 'Ladki Bahin' scheme in advance, citing the enforcement of the model code of conduct for municipal elections. The decision follows complaints about the timing of the release, coinciding with upcoming municipal elections.
The BJP has expanded its footprint in Maharashtra following strong performance in assembly elections, while other parties are seeing their political bases shrink, according to a party official. The assessment is based on the BJP's performance in civic polls across 29 municipal corporations.
Large hoardings praising Fadnavis' leadership appeared across the city, reflecting a celebratory mood within the BJP camp following its strong performance in the country's richest civic body.
Maharashtra heads to the polls for 29 municipal corporations, with Mumbai's BMC election taking center stage as the BJP-led Mahayuti faces off against the Thackeray front. Key issues include promises for women, pollution control, and the city's financial health.
With the Congress coming third overall and having done much better than Shiv Sena-UBT and NCP-SP, its allies in Maha Vikas Aghadi, political analysts said it will force a rethink as far as coordination, seat-sharing and leadership are concerned ahead of the 2029 assembly polls.
Ajit Pawar on Sunday announced the alliance between the factions for the Pimpri Chinchwad civic polls.
The Congress won elections to the Latur Municipal Corporation (LMC) in central Maharashtra on Friday, bagging a clear majority with 43 seats in the 70-member body, leaving the Bharatiya Janata Party a distant second with 22 seats.
MNS chief Raj Thackeray met Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray to finalize seat-sharing arrangements for the upcoming civic polls. The meeting occurred as the deadline for filing nominations ended. The alliance aims to challenge the BJP and Shinde-led Shiv Sena in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections.
'If the BJP had contested all 227 seats, I believe they would have managed to secure a majority on their own.'
As Mumbaikars voted in the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation elections on January 15, voters in tony Breach Candy in South Mumbai, many of them in their 50s, 60s and 70s, turned up with decades of voting behind them and very clear expectations from the new Mumbai corporators.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and MNS leader Raj Thackeray announced an alliance ahead of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections.
Despite forging an alliance with the faction led by his uncle, Nationalist Congress Party chief and Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday failed to protect the party's traditional bastions of Pune and neighbouring Pimpri-Chinchwad, as the Bharatiya Janata Party decimated both the NCPs in the municipal corporation elections.
