The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has decided to contest all 227 seats in the upcoming BMC elections, and the party has finalised its candidates for at least 15 of the seats. “Almost 80 candidates have been confirmed. For remaining wards, interviews have been conducted to finalise the candidates since every ward has more than four applications in queue,” said Deepaq Silan, a Colaba resident and committee member at AAP.
Silan will be contesting from Cuffe Parade (ward 226). The other wards where the AAP has finalised its candidates include: Dharavi (ward 185), Govandi (ward 136), Andheri (ward 189), Anushakti Nagar (ward 158), Wadala (ward 180). Other areas where the AAP will field its candidates include Malad, Byculla, Mahim, Dahisar, Chandivali, Kandivali, Dindoshi and Vile Parle. “Our only agenda is development,” Silan said. However, the party is yet to announce the candidates officially.
No other political party so far has officially or unofficially announced its candidates, but are expected to do so soon. The BJP, however, has declared its steering committee for BMC elections, which is tasked to conduct comprehensive ward-wise review and submit detailed reports to its Mumbai BJP President and Minister Ashish Shelar. The key job of the committee will be to spread head party's election strategy.
The high-voltage BMC elections are expected to be held in November. As per the new timeline, the submission of the draft ward boundaries by the civic commissioners will be submitted to the state urban development department by August 1-5. The issuance of the notification of final ward boundaries will be by October 3- 6. This will be followed by acting on suggestions and objections by citizens, nominations, and campaigning before the final polls.
The Supreme Court had directed the state government in May to notify the civic elections and hold the polls within four months. Accordingly, the civic bodies have started the delimitation process. In Mumbai, the number of civic wards remains 227, although minor changes in ward boundaries are expected.
The last BMC elections were held in 2017. The corporators’ term ended in 2022, and since then the BMC is under administrative rule. In the 2017 BMC elections, the undivided Shiv Sena led with 84 seats, followed by the BJP with 82 seats, Congress (31), NCP (9), MNS (7) and independents 14. However, with the split in the Shiv Sena and NCP, the political dynamics have changed.
