Ruling Maharashtra Alliance To Fight Civic Polls Together: State Minister

Maharashtra Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule has said that the ruling Mahayuti alliance in the state will fight the forthcoming Zilla Parishad and Municipal Corporation elections as a united front. A crucial high-level meeting in this regard was attended by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Maharashtra Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Ravindra Chavan, and senior leaders.

"All district-level leaders have been directed to complete the Mahayuti structure at the grassroots level at the earliest. Minor issues may arise on 5-10 per cent seats locally, but wherever required, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde will personally intervene and take the final decision," Bawankule, who is also the BJP's state-in-charge for local body polls, told reporters.

"Ajit Pawar Is Inseparable Part Of Alliance"

For the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, the alliance has adopted a "4 + 4" formula. A coordination committee comprising four senior office-bearers each from BJP and Shiv Sena (Shinde group), along with representatives of other Mahayuti partners, will finalise seat-sharing after detailed technical analysis. Differences, if any, will be resolved by the top leadership.

Bawankule further clarified that the crucial decision regarding the post of Mayor of Mumbai will be taken jointly by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.

Bawankule dismissed any speculation, asserting that Deputy Chief Minister Pawar and his Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) form an integral part of the Mahayuti. "Recently local body elections saw some electoral differences among workers at a few places, but those have been completely resolved. There has never been any ill will, only normal electoral differences of opinion, which are now a thing of the past," the Maharashtra revenue minister added.

Addressing the issue of Vidarbha's development, Bawankule said that ever since the Devendra Fadnavis-led government came to power in 2014, the region has witnessed unprecedented progress. He slammed the Congress for decades of neglect that led to its decline in the region. Bawankule also reiterated that, given Vidarbha's largest forest cover in the state, the headquarters of the Forest Department will remain in Nagpur and will not be shifted to Mumbai.