Latur: Political equations in Latur have changed completely in the final phase of filing nominations for the Latur Municipal Corporation elections. Long-standing alliances have broken down, and parties that once stood together are now contesting against each other.
The BJP-led ruling Mahayuti has split due to differences over seat-sharing. As no consensus was reached, the BJP, NCP (Ajit Pawar faction), and the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena are contesting the elections separately.
On the other hand, a new political understanding has emerged between the Congress and the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA). Without making any public announcement, the two parties finalised a last-minute formula under which Congress will contest 65 seats and VBA 5 seats. This move is seen as a strategic step by Congress to prevent division of votes and is being viewed as a major challenge for the BJP. Similarly, NCP (SP) and Shiv-Sena (UBT) have united to contest the civic poll. NCP (SP) will contest 17 seats, while Shiv-Sena (UBT) to field candidates at 9 seats.
With splits in the Mahayuti and new alliances on the opposition side, Latur is now set to witness multi-cornered contests in most wards. The fight has become intense due to a mix of established leaders trying to protect their reputation and new faces aiming to make their mark.
With these rapidly changing equations, it has become difficult to predict who will emerge as the next mayor of Latur. In this high-stakes political battle, all eyes are now on the voters, who will ultimately decide the outcome.
The BJP is contesting the highest number of seats with 70, followed by the Congress with 65 seats. The NCP (Ajit Pawar) has fielded candidates in 60 seats, while the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) is contesting 5 seats. The Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) is contesting 11 seats. Meanwhile, the opposition alliance partners, NCP (Sharad Pawar) and Shiv Sena (UBT), are contesting 17 and 9 seats respectively.
As per an official press note, a total of 759 nomination forms have been filed for the Latur City Municipal Corporation general elections 2025 till December 30.
According to the election schedule, nominations were accepted on December 30, during which 533 nomination forms were submitted. With these, the total number of nominations filed so far has reached 759.
The nomination process was conducted through various Election Decision Officers, each responsible for specific ward groups. The highest number of nominations was reported 173 in wards 1, 2, 3 under Election Decision Officer No. 1, followed by Officer No. 5 with 153 nominations in wards no 13, 14, 15 and Officer No. 3 with 121 nominations in wards no 7, 8, 9.
Meanwhile, discontent has spread among some local prominent leaders after their parties denied them tickets for the civic elections.
