Bhiwandi: The electoral battle for the Bhiwandi-Nizampur City Municipal Corporation (BNCMC) has officially begun, with the bugle for the civic polls sounding loud and clear. As aspirants file nominations for the post of corporator under the banner of so-called “friendly contests,” political equations forged during the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections have been put on the back burner. After a prolonged three-year vacancy, the mayor’s chair of the civic body is finally set to get a new occupant following the 2026 municipal elections.
Mayor’s chair to be filled after three-year vacancy
The BNCMC was established on December 16, 2001, and its first general election was held in May 2002. The upcoming polls, scheduled for January 15, 2026, will mark the fifth general election of the civic body. Civically conscious citizens believe that the appointment of an elected mayor will end the ongoing ‘administrator rule’ and pave the way for comprehensive and accountable development of the city.
Following the first civic election, Congress leader Suresh Tawre served as Bhiwandi’s first mayor from June 13, 2002, to February 17, 2005. Tawre later went on to become Bhiwandi’s first Member of Parliament after the constituency was created. From February 18, 2005, to June 12, 2007, independent corporator Vilas Patil became mayor with the support of multiple parties after engineering a split in the Samajwadi Party. Between June 13, 2007, and December 14, 2009, Javed Dalvi of the Bhiwandi Vikas Aghadi was elected mayor with the backing of the Samajwadi Party and Congress. He was followed by Yashashree Kadu of the Konark Vikas Aghadi, who became the city’s first woman mayor, serving from December 15, 2009, to June 10, 2012. Pratibha Vilas Patil then held the mayor’s office from June 11, 2012, to December 10, 2014.
Shiv Sena’s Tushar Chaudhary was elected mayor from December 11, 2014, to June 8, 2017. Javed Dalvi returned to the mayoral post for a second term from June 9, 2017, to December 8, 2019, this time with the support of Shiv Sena. In December 2019, Pratibha Patil was elected mayor for the second time with the backing of the BJP and 18 rebel Congress corporators, under the leadership of former mayor Vilas Patil.
Administrator rule imposed post-Covid
Following the Covid-19 pandemic, Pratibha Patil’s tenure ended on June 8, 2022, after which administrator rule was imposed in the municipal corporation. Since then, the civic body has been run by the municipal commissioner as administrator. The mayor’s post has remained vacant since June 2022, a wait that is expected to end after the 2026 elections.
The previous mayoral and deputy mayoral elections were marked by high political drama, as 18 Congress corporators defied the party whip and rebelled, followed by four more corporators switching sides. It is alleged that the corporator who issued the Congress whip later joined the rebels himself. This rebellion enabled Pratibha Patil of the four-member Konark Vikas Aghadi to secure the mayor’s post, while Congress rebel Imran Khan was elected deputy mayor with the Aghadi’s support—dealing a major blow to the then ruling Congress–Shiv Sena alliance.
In the 2017 BNCMC general elections, Congress emerged as the single largest party, winning 47 of the 90 seats and securing a clear majority. The BJP won 19 seats, Shiv Sena 12, Konark Vikas Aghadi four, RPI (A) four, Samajwadi Party two, and two seats went to independents. Despite its absolute majority, Congress supported Shiv Sena to install Javed Dalvi as mayor, while the deputy mayor’s post was given to Shiv Sena. This political arrangement pushed the BJP and Konark Vikas Aghadi out of power—an outcome they later reversed by orchestrating a split among 18 Congress corporators to establish their own control over the civic body.
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