English
Bhiwandi, May 26: Congress, which won 26 seats in the previous municipal corporation elections in Bhiwandi, won a decisive mandate in this round of polls. The party was voted to power with 46 seats. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) surpassed Shiv Sena to emerge second with 20 seats.
The results of Bhiwandi municipal corporation election comes as a major relief to the Congress, following a string of drubbings faced by the party in local body polls across Maharashtra. For BJP, the results indicate the progress of saffron party as it had managed to win only 8 seats in the 2012 polls. Shiv Sena, the ally-cum-rival of BJP, bagged 16 seats, same as it won in previous round of the polls.
Bhiwandi Municipal Corporation Election Results 2017
| Party | Seats |
| Congress | 46 |
| BJP | 20 |
| Shiv Sena | 16 |
| NCP | 0 |
| Samajwadi Party | 2 |
| Others | 6 |
Bhiwandi, with a considerable Muslim population, witnessed a contest between the Congress and NCP-Samajwadi Party combine in the Muslim-dominated pockets. The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen also entered the fray in a bid to capture the Muslim votes. The high density of Muslims in several wards of Bhiwandi compelled the Shiv Sena and BJP to also field candidates from the minority community.
However, Congress emerged as the most preferred electoral choice among the Muslims, with the NCP-Samajwadi Party alliance winning only 2 seats, whereas, the AIMIM failing to open its account.
The Republican Party of India led by Ramdas Athawale, along with Konark Aghadi, won 3 seats each.
Although Bhiwandi poll verdict halted the winning streak of BJP in urban body polls, the party succeeded in expanding its electoral base and surpassing the Shiv Sena.
Apart from Bhiwandi, State Election Commission also announced the results of Malegaon and Panvel City Municipal Corporation elections. In Panvel, BJP won with a decisive two-third majority, bagging 51 out of the 78 seats contested. In Malegaon, however, BJP won 9 seats, with Congress emerging as the single largest with 28 seats.
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