The political landscape of Maharashtra is set for a major test as the State Election Commission announced fresh elections for key municipal corporations, with polling scheduled for January 15, 2025. The shadow of the 2017 civic polls, which dramatically reshaped urban power in the state, looms large over the upcoming contest.
The 2017 Benchmark: BJP's Decisive Urban Conquest
In the last round of elections for what were then 27 municipal corporations, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) executed a stunning takeover of urban Maharashtra. The party contested a total of 2,736 seats across these corporations and emerged as the single largest force, winning 1,099 seats. This marked a seismic shift from its previous tally of just 320 seats.
This more than threefold increase was widely attributed to the momentum from its 2014 Lok Sabha victory. The BJP secured absolute majorities in a string of crucial urban centers, including Panvel, Mira Bhayandar, Nashik, Pune, Pimpri Chinchwad, Nagpur, and Chandrapur. This performance established the party as the dominant force in the state's civic bodies outside the Shiv Sena's Mumbai fortress.
The Fractured Landscape of 2025
Eight years later, the political battlefield is unrecognizable. The key alliances of 2017 have shattered, and major parties have split. The BJP's primary rival then, the undivided Shiv Sena, is now divided into the Shiv Sena (UBT) led by Uddhav Thackeray and the Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
In 2017, the Shiv Sena, despite being in a strained alliance with the BJP at the state level, managed to win 489 seats. It secured an absolute majority only in Thane (67 of 131 seats). However, a significant portion of that organizational strength is now with Eknath Shinde's faction, leaving Uddhav Thackeray's Sena (UBT) in a challenging position.
The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which have also since split, faced substantial setbacks in 2017. The Congress won 439 seats, gaining simple majorities only in Bhiwandi Nizampur and Nanded Waghala. The undivided NCP secured 294 seats but failed to get a majority in any corporation.
Mumbai: The Ultimate Prize
All eyes are on the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), India's richest civic body. The 2017 result in Mumbai was a cliffhanger, with the Shiv Sena winning 84 seats and the BJP 82 seats. Despite the narrow gap, the BJP chose to support its ally in forming the administration. Today, with the Sena divided and new players in the fray, control of the BMC is completely up for grabs, making it the epicenter of the 2025 civic battle.
The Stakes for the Upcoming Polls
The number of municipal corporations in Maharashtra has increased from 27 to 29 with the addition of Jalna and Ichalkaranji. The upcoming elections will be a referendum on the stability of the BJP's expanded urban base and the resilience of the other parties' weakened structures.
Unlike 2017, where parties fought largely intact, the current scenario is defined by splits, realignments, and new political formations. The 2017 results, therefore, serve less as a direct predictor and more as a baseline to measure how drastically Maharashtra's urban politics has evolved. The answer to whether the BJP can hold its ground or if a new order will emerge will be decided when voters step into the polling booths in early 2025.
