Maharashtra civic polls: Mahayuti set to rule Mumbai; saffron storm across the state

Congress claims mayoral posts in 5 cities, flags poll irregularities

Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal on Friday claimed that the party would secure mayoral posts in five cities and have around 350 corporators across the state, adding that the Congress would be part of governing arrangements in at least 10 municipal corporations.

The Congress said it was in a position to install its mayors in Latur, Chandrapur, Bhiwandi in Thane district, Parbhani and Kolhapur, among the 29 municipal corporations that went to polls on January 15, with counting held on Friday.

Speaking to reporters in Buldhana, Sapkal said the party’s performance may not be entirely satisfactory, but stressed that it had fought an “ideological battle” without compromising its values and had emerged as the principal Opposition force in Maharashtra. “The Congress today stands as the second-largest party in the state,” he said, noting that the party contested independently where possible and entered alliances elsewhere to strengthen itself organisationally and ideologically.

Alleging large-scale irregularities, Sapkal accused the BJP-led alliance of misusing money power and enabling bogus voting. “There was rampant distribution of money and bogus voting. Despite this, Congress workers stood firmly against the BJP’s bulldozer politics. This is the victory of our workers’ resolve,” he said.

Referring to Mumbai, Sapkal alleged that the BJP’s success was the result of “fixing”. “From ward delimitation to the use of machines and even issues related to indelible ink, everything was part of fixing,” he said, accusing the Election Commission of acting at the BJP’s behest.

Claiming the polls were neither free nor fair, Sapkal cited bogus voters, inducements, candidate poaching and what he described as the EC’s “ineffective functioning”. “Democracy and the Constitution are under threat,” he said, while asserting that Congress would continue its struggle. “This is a time of struggle. We are not disheartened by defeat and are fully prepared for the next battle,” he added, warning that authoritarianism may rise briefly but would eventually collapse.

(With agency inputs)

BJP civic win reflects Hindutva-devlopment plank: Fadnavis

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday described the BJP’s performance in the Maharashtra civic polls as a triumph of the party’s core ideology, asserting that Hindutva and development go hand in hand.

“Hindutva has always been our soul; one cannot differentiate our Hindutva from development,” Fadnavis said, as quoted by PTI.

His remarks came amid a sharp ideological exchange with the Shiv Sena (UBT), led by former ally Uddhav Thackeray, which has accused the BJP of practising “fake” Hindutva. The BJP, in turn, has alleged that the Thackerays have abandoned the ideology altogether.

According to trends reported by television channels till 6:25 pm, the BJP and its allies were poised to form governing boards in 25 of the 29 municipal corporations across the state. This includes a strong showing in Mumbai’s Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, underscoring the ruling alliance’s dominance in the civic polls.

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Mahayuti set to form boards in 25 of 29 municipal corporations, including Mumbai, says CM Fadnavis on Maharashtra civic polls.

BJP nears half of civic seats as Mahayuti tally tops 1,800

The BJP on its own was leading or had already won at least 1,318 of the 2,869 municipal seats across 29 corporations in Maharashtra, according to trends reported by television channels at 5:55 pm. This puts the party close to securing nearly half of all available seats.

With the addition of its state-level allies-the Shiv Sena led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and the NCP led by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar- the Mahayuti alliance’s overall tally was projected to cross 1,800 seats. However, in some municipal corporations, local dynamics differed, with alliance partners contesting against each other, reported the Hindustan Times.

The Shiv Sena, contesting independently in several places, was leading or winning in 364 seats.

The Congress, which chose to go solo in these elections, was showing a comparatively respectable performance, winning or leading in around 280 seats.

Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena was trailing significantly, with leads or wins in only 160 wards, including losses in its traditional stronghold of Mumbai, where the BJP–Shinde alliance was posting a decisive victory.

The AIMIM, led by Asaduddin Owaisi, was also emerging as a notable player, winning or leading in 86 wards, with Malegaon standing out as its most significant success, as per the trends.

BJP breaks Sena hold, emerges largest party in BMC polls

Ending the nearly 30-year dominance of the undivided Shiv Sena, the BJP on Friday emerged as the single largest party in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections, marking a decisive shift in Mumbai’s civic politics. The BJP-led alliance is set to secure around 125 of the 227 seats in the BMC, India’s richest civic body with a budget of Rs 74,427 crore for 2025–26.

Vote counting for Mumbai and 28 other municipal corporations was held on Friday, a day after polling recorded a turnout of 54.77 per cent. Backed by a strong showing from Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena, the BJP is now firmly placed to control the cash-rich BMC.

The high-profile contest saw Uddhav and Raj Thackeray reunite after two decades, but early results suggested their experiment failed to translate into electoral gains. In Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad, the BJP surged far ahead of the rival NCP factions.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis emerged as a central figure in the victory, with the BJP surpassing its previous BMC high of 82 seats in 2017. The party’s ‘Mission Mumbai’ has cemented its position as the dominant force in the state’s financial capital, shifting the city’s political narrative from identity politics to a development-focused mandate.

Maharashtra minister Nitesh Rane said the results reflected voter support for the alliance’s Hindutva pitch. “Jo Hindu ki baat karega wo Maharashra pe raj karenga,” he posted on X.

Elsewhere, the BJP is on track to improve upon its 2017 performance in Nagpur, while the Congress managed a morale-boosting win in Latur, securing a clear majority in the 70-member civic body. Elections to all 29 municipal corporations were held on January 15 after a gap of several years, reshaping the urban political landscape across Maharashtra.

(With agency inputs)

Siddaramaiah flags ‘vote chori’ concerns over BMC ink reports

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday raised concerns over reports claiming that indelible ink used during the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation polls could be easily removed, terming it another “troubling chapter” in what he described as ‘Vote Chori’.

Emphasising that democracy rests on the sanctity of every vote, Siddaramaiah said electoral safeguards must not be weakened. The BMC elections were held after a gap of nine years on Thursday, with counting underway on Friday.

In a post on X, he said media reports and viral videos showed “so-called indelible ink being wiped off easily with sanitiser, acetone and other agents,” raising “grave concerns about electoral credibility”. He added that this was “not an isolated glitch” but part of a larger pattern of “Vote Chori”. “Weakening basic safeguards and dismissing citizens’ concerns doesn’t protect democracy — it damages it,” he said, urging the Election Commission to act with “transparency, accountability and corrective measures”.

The Congress has been campaigning nationwide against alleged vote theft, led by Rahul Gandhi, targeting the BJP-led government and the Election Commission.

(With agency inputs)

Mahayuti win shows people reject negative politics: Piyush Goyal

Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday welcomed the Mahayuti alliance’s performance in the Maharashtra municipal corporation elections, calling the results a clear endorsement of the ruling coalition.

“It is a matter of great joy that the Mahayuti alliance has once again won the trust and blessings of the people of Maharashtra,” Goyal said. Taking aim at the opposition, he remarked that the “Maha ‘Vinash’ Aghadi”, comprising the Congress, Uddhav Thackeray’s party and Sharad Pawar’s party, was leading in “only 7 or 8 seats”. “This shows that they have lost the people’s trust. There is no place for negative politics,” he added.

Goyal also highlighted the outcome in Mumbai, saying that after several years the city would see a stable civic administration. “In the Mumbai Municipal Corporation, after many years, we will see a stable government with a clear majority, formed by the Mahayuti alliance, consisting of the BJP and Eknath Shinde’s party,” he said.

He further claimed that voters had rejected the opposition’s strategy, adding that “the people of Mumbai have given a befitting reply to the unethical alliance formed by Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray.”

Amid BJP's statewide sweep, Congress wins big in Latur

The Congress won elections to the Latur Municipal Corporation (LMC) in central Maharashtra on Friday (January 16), bagging a clear majority with 43 seats in the 70-member body, leaving the BJP a distant second with 22 seats.

Local political observers believe Maharashtra BJP president Ravindra Chavan's controversial remarks on Congress stalwart and late Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, who hailed from Latur, days before polling consolidated votes in favour of the Grand Old Party.

Read the full story here. 

BJP fires ‘khandani chor’ jibe at Rahul over EC gaslighting charge

The BJP on Friday stepped up its attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of attempting to cast doubts on the Maharashtra civic poll process while vote counting was still underway.

The party’s response followed Gandhi’s claim that “vote chori is an anti-national act” and his allegation that the Election Commission was “gaslighting” voters amid a controversy over the quality of indelible ink used in marker pens during Thursday’s civic polls.

Reacting sharply, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said on X, “Bahana brigade back! Accepting defeat before counting ends?” He accused Gandhi of a familiar pattern, saying, “Rahul back to doing what he does best — discredit, distort and disinform,” and added that the “khandani chor” remark echoed claims earlier made by the Thackerays.

Poonawalla also questioned the outcome of Gandhi’s earlier allegations of “vote chori” during the Bihar elections.

Another BJP spokesperson, Pradeep Bhandari, said the opposition routinely raises allegations to avoid accountability. “Every season the ‘parivarvadi’ come up with one or the other charge, which turns into a damp squib in courts and public opinion,” he said. He further alleged that an “anti-national party” was looking for excuses in the face of an impending defeat in the BMC polls.

The BJP has repeatedly dismissed Gandhi’s vote theft claims as “baseless” and accused him of trying to deflect attention from political setbacks. It has also questioned why leaders of the opposition INDIA bloc did not challenge the Bihar election results in court or through constitutional forums.

(With agency inputs)