MUMBAI: As the BJP is celebrating its victory in seven wards in civic elections in Maharashtra, the party’s attempt to appease the Muslim community by fielding 27 Muslim candidates has not quite worked in the region.
The BJP won 79 of 252 from all the three Municipal Corporations while sweeping Panvel with 51 out of 78 seats. There the Congress and the NCP won two seats each even as Peasants and Workers Party (PWP), that dominated the erstwhile Panvel municipal council, got 23 seats.
In the textile town of Bhiwandi, the BJP, that had eight members in the outgoing house, won 19 seats and with its alliance members like the RPI (A) its tally has touched 29. However, the Congress, with its 47 members, is confident of gathering numbers required for majority in the 90-member house.
In Malegaon the mandate is fractured. The Congress emerged largest party with 28 members in 84-member house, followed by NCP (20), Shiv Sena (13) and BJP (9). Owaisi’s AIMIM too got seven seats in Malegaon. The BJP, for the first time had fielded significant number of Muslim candidates in Malegaon, contrary to its track record in past few years of not fielding any Muslim candidate.
The Shiv Sena, that contested independently could not won any seat in Panvel, while it won 25 seats in the other two municipal corporations.