Despite Marathi identity push during BMC polls, migrant representation holds steady

Linguistic identity

The latest results show little change despite the sharper focus on linguistic identity during the campaign.

A party-wise break-up shows how differently political parties depend on non-Marathi voters. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the single largest party in the new House, has the biggest non-Marathi presence. Of its 89 corporators, 38 or 42.7 per cent are non-Marathi, reflecting its strong support in linguistically mixed suburban areas.

Both factions of the Shiv Sena remain largely rooted in Marathi-speaking voters. The Uddhav Thackeray-led Sena (UBT) has seven non-Marathi corporators among its 65 winners, while the Eknath Shinde-led Sena has five non-Marathi corporators out of 29. These numbers reinforce the Sena’s continued emphasis on Marathi identity.

The Indian National Congress shows a contrasting pattern. Of its 24 corporators, 16 are non-Marathi, highlighting its reliance on migrant and minority-heavy pockets. A similar trend is seen in the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), where seven of the eight elected corporators are non-Marathi. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which won three seats, returned only Marathi corporators.

The changing place of migrants

Non-Marathi communities once held a strong grip over the Bombay Municipal Corporation. In the decades after independence, Gujaratis, Parsis, Marwaris, Muslims, Christians and South Indians were prominent in civic politics. Though non-Marathis made up about 58 per cent of Mumbai’s population in the 1960s, they accounted for nearly 45 per cent of corporators by the mid-1970s. Between Independence and 1968, 15 of the city’s 21 mayors were non-Marathi.

This began to change with the rise of the Shiv Sena from the late 1960s. By building strong neighbourhood networks and mobilising Marathi voters, the Sena turned Marathi identity into a central theme of civic politics. Over time, non-Marathi representation fell steadily, touching a low of 28 per cent in 2012, even as migration to Mumbai continued.
Census data shows that while Marathi remains the most widely spoken language in Mumbai, the Hindi-speaking population has grown much faster than any other group since the 1970s. Gujarati speakers have grown more slowly, while Urdu speakers have also seen a steady increase.

The political effect of this shift became clear after 2014. In the 2017 BMC elections, 76 non-Marathi corporators were elected, making up for 33 per cent of the House, up from 28 per cent in 2012. The current House, with 78 non-Marathi corporators, reflects the same trend.

This rise in non-Marathi representation sharpened language-based campaigning ahead of elections, especially by parties such as the Shiv Sena and the MNS. At the same time, it helped the BJP consolidate support among migrant voters, whose numbers have grown steadily.

With the BJP in power at the Centre, the party has been more comfortable projecting itself as pro-migrant in Mumbai, even as the Sena’s earlier anti-migrant tone has softened. The BJP has also promoted more non-Marathi leaders in the city than in the past, giving migrant communities greater political confidence and visibility.

Speaking to The Indian Express earlier, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the BJP was not on the defensive on the issue of Marathi identity. “Since we are a pan-India party, we don’t aggressively project regional pride. In every election, they try to push emotive issues as they have nothing to counter my development agenda. We are not defensive on Marathi issues. We are batting on the front foot,” Fadnavis said.