Congress Falls Short of Expectations in Mumbai's BMC Elections
The Congress party secured 24 seats in the recent Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections. This result fell below the party's own expectations. In 2017, Congress had won 31 seats, meaning this year's tally represents a loss of seven seats.
Reasons Behind the Underperformance
Party leaders pointed to several factors for this outcome. They highlighted the poaching of former corporators by rival groups. Congress also faced a significant lack of expenditure compared to the governing parties. Additionally, the party received less media space during the campaign period.
Congress MLA Aslam Shaikh offered a perspective on the results. Three of his relatives contested and won in the elections. He stated that despite all odds, the party managed to win a considerable number of seats. Shaikh described this as a positive outcome given the challenging circumstances.
Preventing Defections and Boosting Morale
A key task for Congress now is to ensure its newly elected corporators remain loyal. In the previous House, many Congress corporators defected to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena faction. The party is keen to prevent a repeat of this scenario.
To boost internal morale, Congress highlighted a silver lining. After the 2017 elections, eight of its 31 corporators left the party. This left Congress with only 21 returning members. Increasing that number to 24 in this election is seen as a modest but positive sign of recovery.
The party had initially set an ambitious target of winning 50 seats in the BMC. Falling short of this goal has prompted introspection.
Analysis of the Electoral Landscape
Congress does not view the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) as a major threat. AIMIM secured eight seats in the city. Congress leaders believe AIMIM mostly took votes away from the Samajwadi Party, not directly from Congress.
Aslam Shaikh noted that Congress won many seats in Muslim-dominated areas. However, he also revealed a painful statistic. "We lost 10 seats by less than 500 votes," Shaikh said, indicating how close the party was to a better result.
Voter Shifts and Alliance Strategies
Political observers noted a trend among Congress voters. Many had shifted to the Shiv Sena (UBT) during the Lok Sabha and state assembly elections when the two parties were in an alliance. These voters did not return to Congress in the BMC polls as the party had hoped.
In response, Congress tried to consolidate its vote bank in Mumbai. It discontinued its alliance with the UBT faction of Shiv Sena for the city polls. Instead, Congress formed alliances with smaller parties. This included the Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA).
Congress MLA Amin Patel outlined the party's future strategy. "With these many corporators, we will be 10% of the total strength in BMC," he said. "Our team is a mix of old-timers and new corporators. With proper guidance, we'll make them work better for the public, which in turn will help the party."
All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary Sachin Sawant stated that the party would conduct a thorough analysis. "We will analyse all the factors," Sawant said, signaling a period of review and planning for future elections.
