BJP, Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena will contest BMC polls as alliance partners: Fadnavis

“The BJP and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena will contest the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation polls together,” Fadnavis said during a media interaction in Mumbai.

“The saffron flag will fly on the BMC headquarters,” he added exuding confidence of victory.

The former Maharashtra chief minister described Shinde-led faction as the “real Shiv Sena”.

The elections to the 227-member BMC are extremely crucial for the BJP, which has started the preparations well in advance.

The BMC polls, likely to be held in January and February next year, has been delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, the seat sharing formula between the BJP and Shinde-led faction has not yet been worked out. There are indications that both sides will discuss the seat sharing based on the ground reality and strength of each party ward wise.

The Shiv Sena won 84 seats, while the BJP bagged 82 seats in the last BMC elections held in February 2017. The Congress won 22 seats, while the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) emerged victorious in only nine seats.

With Shinde on its side this time, the BJP is leaving no stone unturned to end the three decades rule of Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena in the BMC.

Even though Thackeray and Shinde have taken up the battle in court to assert their political rights over the original Shiv Sena, the BJP leaders – both at the Centre and in Maharashtra – describe Shinde-led faction as the real Shiv Sena.

Fadnavis had on Monday during his address to the BJP workers urged them to take up the electoral challenges in Maharashtra with renewed determination.

He also exhorted the BJP workers to fight the civic body polls as if it was their last electoral battle.

Explaining the reason behind his last electoral battle remark, Fadnavis said : “When you take up an electoral challenge serious and take to field as though you are fighting the last battle, the approach is to channelise all your energy and thoughts with single mindedness.”

“This remark was not just for the BMC polls but all coming elections in Maharashtra,” he added.

Fadnavis also responded to the BJP’s decision to focus on the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency, which is NCP supremo Sharad Pawar’s political bastion.

“The BJP’s focus is Mission India. Its focus is Mission Maharashtra and Baramati is one Lok Sabha seat, which comes under 48 Maharashtra Lok Sabha seats,” Fadnavis said.

When asked if the BJP considered Baramati as the last frontier, Fadnavis said: “There is nothing like last frontier. Each and every seat is important for the BJP. The party puts its best efforts to win every seat in the Lok Sabha and assembly polls.”