Mumbai Mayor Election: BJP and Shiv Sena Announce Candidates

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has nominated corporator Ritu Tawade as its candidate for the Mumbai mayor election, with ally Shiv Sena announcing Sanjay Ghadi as the deputy mayor candidate. Both announcements were made on Saturday at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) headquarters, following the January 15 civic elections.

BJP’s Dominant Position in Municipal Elections

Tawade, a corporator from Ward 132, will represent the ruling alliance’s mayoral ambitions. BJP emerged as the single largest party with 89 seats in the 227-member corporation, while its partner Shiv Sena secured 29 seats. Together, the alliance commands 118 corporators, comfortably surpassing the 114-seat halfway mark required to secure crucial civic positions. This strong numerical advantage positions them favorably for both mayor and deputy mayor elections.

Shiv Sena’s Deputy Mayor Strategy

Ghadi, elected from Ward 5, has been allocated a 15-month term as deputy mayor. Notably, Ghadi was among senior former Shiv Sena (UBT) corporators who switched allegiance to the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction. The party plans to rotate the deputy mayor position among four of its corporators, ensuring broader representation within the faction. This strategic distribution reflects Shiv Sena’s intent to distribute leadership opportunities among its members.

The opposition remains fragmented, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning 65 seats, Congress 24, MNS six, and NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) three seats. The BMC, India’s richest civic body with a 2025-26 budget of Rs 74,450 crore, continues its administrative operations under the state-appointed BMC commissioner since March 2022.