MUMBAI: Even before campaigning began, the BJP-led Mahayuti received a major boost ahead of Maharashtra’s 29 municipal corporation elections, with 70 candidates elected unopposed, all but two belonging to ruling parties.
According to the State Election Commission, civic body polls will be held on January 15, with counting scheduled for January 16. Of the 70 unopposed candidates, 44 are from the BJP, 22 from the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, and two from the Ajit Pawar-led NCP. One candidate belongs to an Islamic party, while another is an independent. Not a single candidate from the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi secured an unopposed victory.
Among the BJP’s 44 unopposed wins, the highest number,15, came from the Kalyan-Dombivali Municipal Corporation. Six candidates each were elected unopposed from Panvel, Jalgaon and Bhiwandi, four from Dhule, three from Ahilya Nagar, and two each from Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad municipal corporations.
The Shiv Sena accounted for 22 unopposed candidates, with seven each from Thane and Kalyan-Dombivali, six from Jalgaon, and two from the Bhiwandi municipal corporation.
Opposition alleged that there is a new pattern in Maharashtra that the ruling party and its powerful leaders are using all tricks from the book to get their candidate elected unopposed.
An Opposition leader, speaking on condition of anonymity citing security concerns, claimed rival candidates were offered between Rs 1 crore and Rs 5 crore to withdraw their nominations. “If money doesn’t work, threats are used. Old police cases are dug up and revived. When even that fails, violence follows. In Solapur, an MNS worker was allegedly killed for refusing to withdraw. This is not democracy; it is dictatorship,” the leader alleged.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) accused the ruling parties of pressuring Opposition candidates to withdraw. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said on X that returning officers were directed to accept withdrawal of nominations late into the night. “A friend of mine, who is in this election process, said this (accepting the form beyond 3 pm) would not be appropriate. He was told by the guardian minister, in a tone that sounded both a request and as a threat, that he should listen to what the local MLA says,” Raut claimed.
“This is mobocracy in the name of democracy. One day, there will be a public uprising like in Bangladesh and Nepal,” he added.
The Shiv Sena claimed five of its candidates have been elected unopposed to the 131-member Thane Municipal Corporation. Meanwhile, six BJP candidates were elected unopposed after the scrutiny of nomination papers for the Bhiwandi-Nizampur Municipal Corporation (BNMC) polls. Three Shiv Sena candidates and one BJP contestant were also declared unopposed in the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation polls in Thane district.
MNS leader Avinash Jadhav criticised the process, saying, “Why do you hold polls if you want to win them before voting. Both the ruling parties should distribute it amongst themselves. Democracy has ended in India and the state. They chose weak candidates of the opposition and got their work done.”
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Arvind Sawant also alleged that the ruling parties applied pressure on Opposition candidates to ensure unopposed victories.