In a surprising turn of events for the ruling coalition, the Mahayuti alliance of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde will not be contesting in four crucial wards of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). This development comes after over a week of intense seat-sharing negotiations where every single seat out of the total 227 was fiercely bargained for.
Secrecy Backfires, Leaving Wards Vacant
Political observers have termed the situation as unexpected and a clear setback for the alliance. The Mahayuti is locked in a fierce triangular battle against the combined force of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) on one side, and the Congress-VBA alliance on the other. In such a closely fought election, every seat holds immense importance.
Despite the high stakes, the alliance will have no candidate in Ward Nos. 145, 167, 211, and 212. According to the initial agreement, two of these wards were allocated to the Shiv Sena and the other two to the BJP. This means the Mahayuti alliance is now contesting in only 223 out of the 227 wards.
A Tactical Failure in Candidate Management
An observer pointed out the irony in the situation. "The BJP-Shinde Sena alliance maintained great secrecy to prevent rebels from filing nominations. But it seems the alliance itself suffered a setback as there are no candidates in four wards," they said. They emphasized that since each ward was part of hard negotiations, its abandonment is puzzling.
The observer highlighted a stark contrast in strategy. "On one hand, there was an attempt to get Mahayuti candidates elected unopposed in many cities and in south Mumbai. But giving up four wards without a fight shows there was poor management by Mahayuti," they added.
The Missing 'Dummy' Candidate Strategy
Experts explained a common electoral tactic that seems to have failed here. It is standard practice for parties to file a dummy or backup candidate's nomination alongside the official candidate. This acts as a safety net; if the official candidate's nomination is rejected on technical grounds, the backup application becomes valid, ensuring the party still has a contender.
"This is what the Shiv Sena (UBT) has done successfully in some wards like Mulund," the observer noted. In the case of the four vacant Mahayuti wards, it appears that due to the confusion and excessive secrecy surrounding the final seat allocation, the crucial step of filing the dummy candidate's nomination was missed entirely. This procedural lapse has effectively handed over these wards to the opposition by default.
The situation was further underscored by the fact that the Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) did not release an official list of its candidates even after the last day for withdrawal of nominations had passed, adding to the overall atmosphere of disarray.
