Maharashtra local body poll outcome 'trailer' of what is to come on January 15, claims Eknath Shinde

Eknath Shinde

As the BJP emerged as the number-one party, way ahead of alliance partners Shiv Sena and NCP as well as the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, in the Maharashtra municipal council and nagar panchayat polls, Deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde said the local body polls

are a trailer of what is in store in the municipal corporation elections on January 15.

Asserting that the Mahayuti had crossed the 200-mark in polls to 286 local bodies, Shinde claimed the "BJP had scored a century" and the Shiv Sena has notched a "half century" and emerged as the second-largest party in the state.

He also hailed the "strike rate" of the Shiv Sena, saying the results were vindication of the good work his party had put in.

According to the State Election Commission (SEC), 67.63 per cent of the voters exercised their franchise in the first phase, which was held in 263 municipal councils and nagar panchayats. In the rest of the municipal councils and nagar panchayats, voting was held on December 20. The SEC had originally announced single-phase polling for all the seats.

The elections spannned every division of the state namely -- Konkan (27), Nashik (49), Pune (60), Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar/Aurangabad (52), Amravati (45) and Nagpur (55). Each district hosts a mix of long-established Municipal Councils and newly formed Nagar Panchayats. 29 Municipal Corporations and several other Nagar Panchayats will go to polls next year.

Additionally, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis congratulated the winning candidates and said now the development continues unabated. He added that the BJP is again Number 1 under the leadership of PM Modi, JP Nadda and BJP National Executive President Nitin Nabin.

“Municipal Council and Municipal Council Election 2025: BJP Again Number 1! Under the leadership of Hon. Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, under the guidance of BJP National President and Hon. Union Minister JP Nadda ji and BJP National Executive President Nitin Nabin ji, and due to the tireless hard work of BJP State President MLA Ravindra Chavan and all workers, BJP is once again Number 1 in the state! Heartiest congratulations to all winning candidates and countless thanks to the voters! Now development continues unabated,” he said.

Today's outcome also sets the stage for the next major political test in the state. The SEC has announced that elections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and 28 other municipal corporations will be held on January 15, with counting scheduled for January 16. As many as 2,869 seats will be up for grabs across these civic bodies, with 3.48 crore voters eligible to vote.