New Delhi, Feb 07 : The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday announced corporator Ritu Tawde as its candidate for the Mumbai mayor election, while ally Shiv Sena nominated Sanjay Ghadi for the deputy mayor’s position, signalling confidence within the ruling alliance ahead of the crucial civic vote.
BJP leader Amit Satam revealed Tawde’s candidature at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) headquarters, while Shiv Sena leader Rahul Shewale confirmed Ghadi’s name for the deputy role.
Tawde represents Ward 132, whereas Ghadi secured victory from Ward 5 in the civic polls held on January 15. According to a statement from Shiv Sena secretary Sanjay More, Ghadi will hold the deputy mayor’s office for 15 months as part of a rotational arrangement designed to give multiple party corporators the opportunity to serve in the post.
Ghadi is among several senior former Shiv Sena (UBT) members who joined the Eknath Shinde led faction, reflecting the shifting political landscape within Mumbai’s municipal body.
In the 227-member BMC, the BJP emerged as the single largest party with 89 seats, while Shiv Sena won 29. With a combined strength of 118 corporators comfortably above the majority mark of 114 the alliance appears well positioned to secure the mayor’s chair.
The Shiv Sena (UBT), which governed the civic body for over two decades beginning in 1997, captured 65 seats. Its allies, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction), won six and one seats respectively.
Among other parties, Congress secured 24 seats, AIMIM eight, the NCP led by Ajit Pawar three, and the Samajwadi Party two, while two independents also registered victories in the high-stakes election conducted after a nine-year interval.
Since March 2022, the BMC commissioner has overseen the corporation as a state-appointed administrator following the expiry of the previous term. The civic body remains India’s wealthiest municipal corporation, with a budget of ₹74,450 crore for 2025–26 larger than the finances of several smaller states.