Mayur Gavture – Nagpur
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With the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) election results now final, Maharashtra politics has entered a phase where the real contest begins after the ballots are counted. In this state, elections rarely conclude with results they transition into negotiations, pressure tactics, and strategic realignments. This is especially true when the prize is Mumbai India’s financial capital and the city that drives nearly 70% of the nation’s financial and corporate ecosystem. Control of Mumbai is not merely civic authority; it is political leverage at the national level.
The first major flashpoint following the verdict is the Mayor’s post. The BJP, buoyed by its numerical advantage, is pushing for the Mayor’s chair, while Eknath Shinde’s faction is demanding a 2.5-year rotational arrangement, a claim rooted more in political survival than arithmetic. Adding to the volatility is the reality that Shinde faction corporators are simultaneously engaging with both the BJP and Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT). Such fluid loyalties are not anomalies but features of Maharashtra’s political culture, where ambiguity itself becomes a bargaining tool.
At the core of this churn lies Mumbai’s unmatched importance. The BMC is not just a municipal body it controls infrastructure pipelines, real estate permissions, and enormous financial flows. Any party that dominates Mumbai gains disproportionate influence over corporate networks, media ecosystems, and long-term political financing.
That is why every major political calculation in Maharashtra eventually converges on the BMC. Beyond the state, the BMC outcome has also sharpened Devendra Fadnavis’s national profile. In the post-election landscape, he is increasingly viewed as a serious long-term contender in the BJP’s leadership pipeline, often mentioned alongside Amit Shah, Yogi Adityanath, and Himanta Biswa Sarma. Each represents a distinct political archetype Shah as the organisational and corporate face, Yogi as the core Hindutva standard-bearer dominant in Uttar Pradesh, and Sarma as a hard-edged regional power broker. Yet each also faces constraints of regional acceptance, internal resistance, or overreliance on polarisation.
Fadnavis, by contrast, occupies a different space. He projects a development-oriented,corporate-friendly, RSS-aligned image, with acceptability beyond Maharashtra and minimal internal opposition within the BJP.
Most of his internal rivals have already been neutralised; today, his only meaningful friction comes from Eknath Shinde, a rivalry sustained largely due to Amit Shah’s backing. As Sanjay Raut once put it, this is “Amit Shah’s Shiv Sena.” Notably, even during periods of intense political hostility, Uddhav Thackeray has largely avoided directly targeting Fadnavis, a restraint that suggests strategic calculation rather than coincidence.
In the aftermath of the BMC verdict, subtle political signals hint at a possible tactical thaw between Devendra Fadnavis and Uddhav Thackeray. There are no formal overtures, but Maharashtra politics often moves through quiet understandings rather than public declarations.
Even indirect or strategic voting during the Mayor’s election could open an unexpected political door especially given that there are no immediate major elections in Maharashtra, allowing space for recalibration without electoral risk.
Shinde’s position is further weakened by a practical constraint if the Mayor’s post falls under a reserved category (especially SC ) due to Supreme Court-mandated rotation,
his faction may not even have a viable candidate. This reality significantly erodes his bargaining power and strengthens the leverage of other players.
Ultimately, the BMC verdict has not settled Maharashtra politics it has activated it. The results have triggered a new phase of negotiations where Mumbai remains the ultimate prize and long-term positioning matters more than immediate optics.
In Maharashtra, alliances are rarely permanent, rivals can become partners, and silence often speaks louder than speeches. The ballots may have been counted, but as always, the real political film begins after the results because in this state, the credits never mean the end.
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Mayur Gavture is a Political Strategy Consultant and currently working as the legislative & Political Associate at the Office of Hon. Member of Parliament Shri Namdev Kirsan. He also has interests in Election Campaign , Legislative Policy – Advocacy & Governance Advisor.