As Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his deputy, Ajit Pawar, held discussions in Delhi regarding cabinet expansion and met with central leaders, Eknath Shinde chose to remain in Mumbai. Shinde convened a meeting with former Shiv Sena corporators, MLAs and MPs from Mumbai at the Ramtek bungalow in Malabar Hill, focusing on preparations for the upcoming BMC elections. Speaking in the meeting, Shinde emphasised that everyone, from grassroots workers to senior leaders, must work diligently during the local body elections. Shinde also instructed the party officials to start preparations immediately.
Shiv Sena leaders Ramdas Kadam, Vijay Shivtare, Rahul Shewale and Deepak Kesarkar, along with other leaders, were also present at the meeting. On Wednesday, former Congress corporator from Thane Municipal Corporation Manoj Shinde, along with numerous supporters, formally joined the Shiv Sena in the presence of Shinde. The event saw the attendance of divisional head Baban More, along with several senior Shiv Sena leaders and party workers.
The BMC elections were last held in 2017. In March 2022, the tenure of the municipal corporators ended, following which an adminis Bawankule meets DyCM Before the Mumbai meeting, BJP state president Chandrashekhar Bawankule met Eknath Shinde at the Varsha bungalow. On Thursday morning, Bawankule, along with Devendra Fadnavis, met Union Minister Amit Shah in Delhi. It is reported that the meeting was regarding the cabinet expansion. trator was appointed to oversee the corporation.
The municipal elections were initially expected to take place in February 2022, but the administrative rule continued. Over the past two years, the municipal budgets have been presented by the administrator. The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government had decided to increase the number of wards in Mumbai from 227 to 236. At that time, BJP had accused Shiv Sena leaders of manipulating the ward increase to benefit their party. However, the High Court has now ruled to retain the original number of 227. The MVA opposed this decision, and Shiv Sena challenged the revised ruling in the Supreme Court. In this election, the MahaYuti alliance is determined to win 185 seats. In the previous election, the BJP had contested alongside Shiv Sena and won 82 seats.
