Mahayuti Tensions Spill Into BMC as Shinde Sena Cancels Registration of 29 Corporators

Mumbai: Cracks within Maharashtra's ruling Mahayuti alliance became harder to ignore on Tuesday after the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena cancelled the registration of 29 Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) corporators. 

The sudden move has triggered questions about unity within the alliance over power-sharing.

What exactly happened?

According to sources, the Shinde Sena took the decision to cancel the registration of 29 corporators due to the dissatisfaction within the Shinde faction over the distribution of key posts in the civic body. 

The corporators affected by the move were reportedly left stranded at the party’s headquarters.

What about the meeting?

The speculation broadened when Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde skipped a scheduled cabinet meeting and also did not attend a meeting with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

Shinde instead travelled to his native village Dare and participated in local campaign activities in Satara district.

What did Fadnavis say?

Later when Fadnavis was asked about Shinde's actions, he replied, "While forming a group, percentages have to be considered. Therefore, sometimes it is beneficial to unite, and sometimes it is beneficial to separate. In the end, leaving the posts of Mayor and Deputy Mayor, all other posts are decided based on the percentage of the total number of corporators elected. We are making estimates accordingly. Based on that, we will decide whether it is beneficial to unite both the groups or whether it is beneficial to separate them."

Replying to allegations of the BJP’s interference, Fadnavis said, "There is no such thing as interference. We are two people who work together and discuss matters before deciding. If we decide to register together, the decision will be made collectively. There is no interference in this. There is only a percentage calculation in group registration. We will do whatever combination of percentages is created to get the maximum members in the standing committee."