As BJP scores big in Maharashtra local polls, what it means for party’s allies, also Opposition
In the aftermath of its dominant showing, the Mahayuti will be optimistic about its chances in the municipal corporation elections next month, especially the BMC polls, even as Maha Vikas Aghadi figures out where it went wrong.
The Bharatiya Janata Party Thane city celebrated its victory in the Maharashtra Nagar Panchayat/Nagar Parishad elections.
(Express Photo by Amit Chakravarthy) 
A year after the BJP swept to power in Maharashtra, the party again underlined its dominance in state politics by emerging as the single-largest party in 129 out of 288 local bodies that went to polls in the first two phases. The ruling Mahayuti coalition crossed the 200 mark, with the Shiv Sena winning 51 local bodies and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) 33.
In contrast, the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) barely touched the 50 mark, with the Congress winning 35 and the Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) finishing with eight each.
The BJP projected the victory, a big boost ahead of the Mumbai civic polls on January 15, as a vindication of the leadership of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, crediting him and the central leadership for steering the coalition out of choppy waters in the lead-up to the elections that were marked by frequent run-ins with the Sena led by Deputy CM Eknath Shinde over allegations of poaching and friction over turf control. The preceding months also saw tension in the coalition over allegations of corruption and other irregularities against Sena and NCP ministers.
For the CM, who addressed 38 rallies across the state ahead of the local polls, this was a litmus test of his ability to bring allies along, moving past hiccups in the ruling alliance. “I express gratitude to the people who have reposed trust in the BJP and our alliance partners. They have given a mandate for good governance in the state and the Centre. The BJP has once again established itself as the number one party in Maharashtra,” Fadnavis said.
“The credit for this victory goes to the political roadmap and vision of Fadnavis,” said state BJP president Ravindra Chavan. “He worked relentlessly, pushing the development agenda and that yielded grand results. People have shown trust in the leadership of PM Narendra Modi and Fadnavis.”
For the BJP, which campaigned for the local polls as if it were the parliamentary or Assembly polls, this was a chance to test its grassroots base and whether it would be up to the task in its attempts to achieve the long-term political goal of “shatpratishat BJP (100% BJP)”. It is the political future the BJP envisages in Maharashtra when it will not require its allies. To that end, dominance in the local polls is a crucial step towards the BJP’s goal. As a result, its allies may not see this election with the same positive outlook that the party itself will.
“The results will help infuse greater confidence in karyakartas for the municipal corporation polls on January 15,” said a BJP leader.
For the Opposition, which has yet to revive organisationally after the Assembly poll loss last year, the results will be another worrying sign in a long list and an ominous signal ahead of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls, which the Sena (UBT) will look to retain, having led it for the last three decades. For the Sena (UBT) and the NCP (SP), which could not manage to increase their tally to double digits, the loss is expected to make it harder to maintain their grassroots structures, most of which have been dented by the split in the parties.
The Congress, however, alleged that the Mahayuti government’s use of administrative machinery was to blame for the Opposition’s poor show. “From money to muscle power, these elections saw the ruling Mahayuti misuse the power and government machinery at will,” said state Congress president Harshvardhan Sapkal.
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