BMC: Election for Mayor’s post to be held on March 8

Shiv Sena which has won 84 seats in the BMC elections is falling short of 30 seats and there are chances that Congress who won 31 seats can extend its support in the mayoral election.

Mumbai, March 1: In Mumbai, the war between Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been gearing up as the countries richest civic body goes for mayor election next week on March 8. The BJP, Shiv Sena and the Congress are hustling to get the mayoral seats and the date, March 8, has also chosen by the BMC’s core committee looking at the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections last phase which will be held on the same day. In mayors elections, there are chances that the Congress would support the Shiv Sena in BMC but its support might hamper Congress’s position in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections by tying up with a saffron party in Mumbai.

Shiv Sena which has won 84 seats in the BMC elections is falling short of 30 seats and there are chances that Congress who won 31 seats can extend its support in the mayoral election. Also on the other side the Congress, the NCP, the MNS, the SP and the AIMIM had refused to support the BJP, the Sena is placed comfortably well to stake a claim. Some reports suggest that the Congress might give an external support to Sena in the BMC.

The BMC elections were held last week on Tuesday and threw up a fractured mandate in which none of the parties had come close to achieve the majority. Also, the BJP had made it clear that it will not take support from Congress to reach the majority. A report in India Today suggest that the Congress might tacitly support the Sena, putting down the BJP’s chances of controlling the BMC and appoint the mayor.

On Monday, Shiv Sena’s mouthpiece Saamna have already taken a potshot at the BJP for allying with the PDP in Jammu and Kashmir. The editorial read, “We welcome the CM’s (Devendra Fadnavis) statement that the BJP won’t go with the Congress, but he should make a small change and say that they won’t go with the Congress but will go with Pakistan favouring (PDP’s) Mehbooba Mufti. Congress is surely questionable, but enjoying power with Mehbooba Mufti, who openly supports Afzal guru is dangerous”.

Meanwhile, there are chances that the Sena and BJP may patch up. A senior RSS leader MG vaidya suggested that the two saffron parties should tie up and share the top post on equal terms. But the Saamna editorial said, “We don’t need his advice… When we need any we will ask… For now, he should give to the ones who need it”.