Edition

English

News
City News
mumbai News
Mumbai Mayor Selection Live Updates: CM Devendra Fadnavis in Davos, Shinde faction corporators huddled at hotel as suspense grows over top BMC post

THE TIMES OF INDIA | Jan 19, 2026, 14:24:04 IST

Mumbai Mayor Selection Live Updates: CM Devendra Fadnavis in Davos, Shinde faction corporators huddled at hotel as suspense grows over top BMC post

Mumbai Mayor Selection 2026 Live Updates: The race for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) mayor has triggered intense political manoeuvring in Mumbai after the declaration of results in the high-stakes civic polls. While the BJP emerged as the single largest party with 89 seats, its Mahayuti ally, the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, won 29 seats in the 227-member BMC, giving the alliance a clear majority. The opposition Shiv Sena (UBT), led by Uddhav Thackeray, secured 65 seats, reigniting speculation and sharp exchanges over who will ultimately claim the powerful mayor’s post in India’s richest civic body.

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut questioned the shifting of corporators from the Shinde faction to luxury hotels in Mumbai, alleging fear of defections and accusing the ruling alliance of turning hotels into “jails.” Raut also took sarcastic swipes at the BJP leadership and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, even as Shinde asserted that the BMC mayor will be from the Mahayuti and described the hotel stay as an orientation programme for newly elected corporators.

The political drama has intensified with claims and counterclaims over poaching attempts, references to past splits in the Shiv Sena, and jibes involving national leaders and recent election victories. Opposition parties including the Congress, AIMIM and Sena (UBT) leaders have weighed in, while BJP leaders have asked rivals to accept the mandate. With a lottery scheduled on January 22 to decide whether the mayor’s post will be reserved for a specific category, and elections expected later this month, negotiations and power-play in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation are set to dominate Maharashtra politics in the days ahead.

14:24 (IST) Jan 19

Mumbai Mayor Selection Live Updates: 'BJP, Mahayuti will work together to run local bodies and take BMC forward'

Bihar Minister Dilip Jaiswal on Sunday said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ally Mahayuti will work together to run local bodies and take the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) forward. Speaking to ANI in Patna, Jaiswal said, "...Mahayuti and BJP contested the elections together there. The people have also given a majority to both parties in the alliance. Therefore, there, everyone will come together to run the local bodies and to take BMC forward." His remarks come after the sweep of the Mahayuti alliance, comprising the BJP and the Shiv Sena (Shinde faction), in the recently concluded BMC elections. The alliance emerged victorious in 25 out of 29 civic bodies across Maharashtra, consolidating its position in the state's local governance. According to official figures released by the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the BMC, the BJP won 89 seats, polling 11,79,273 votes, which accounts for 21.58 per cent of the total votes cast. Among all winning candidates, the BJP's vote share stands at 45.22 per cent, making it the single largest party in the civic body.

13:51 (IST) Jan 19

Ex-Aaditya aide wins where many Shinde Sena veterans couldn’t

While many of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena’s former corporators lost the BMC electons. Amey Ghole, a former close aide of Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray, won with a massive margin of over 11,000 votes from Wadala. Ghole was one of the few Sena candidates to win in the Marathi heartland of Central Mumbai. Ghole defeated the UBTMNS combine candidate Bajrang Deshmukh from Ward No. 178. Ghole is a front-runner for any top post that Shinde manages to get from the BJP after a power-sharing agreement in BMC. Amey was the treasurer of the Aaditya-led Yuva Sena for a decade before he quit and joined the Shinde Sena in 2023. He first won the BMC polls in 2017 by a margin of fewer than 200 votes. He was chairperson of the civic health committee during the COVID-19 pandemic. “I won because of the hard work of Sena workers, the development done by DCM Eknath Shinde and CM Devendra Fadnavis. I thank the people of Wadala-Matunga for showing their faith in me and not falling prey to the fake narrative of the Marathi Manoos being in danger,” Ghole said. Almost half of former corporators who joined Shinde-led Sena from Sena (UBT) or from Congress lost the BMC polls. In many cases, the ex-corporators fielded their wives or relatives as their seats were reserved for women.Contesting. In South and Central Mumbai, the Shinde Sena fared poorly and managed to win just 3–4 seats.

13:41 (IST) Jan 19

Pragmatic picks: 2 of Sena-UBT’s winners Muslim, one of MIM dalit

The BMC elections were marked by overt religious rhetoric, but political parties adopted a pragmatic approach to raise their tallies by fielding candidates across religious lines. While one of AIMIM’s eight newly corporators is a dalit, Vijay Ubale (33) from Govandi, both Shiv Sena factions propped up several Muslim candidates. Two of Sena (UBT)’s Muslim candidates won. Many winners said they focused on the work on the ground rather than leaning into religious or linguistic identity politics. “We placed the Constitution ahead and talked about social justice. So, we didn’t feel there was any issue during the campaign. Now, ST and SC communities are finding a connect with AIMIM,” said Ubale. Ubale is among the poorest BMC corporators, with total assets of Rs 1.5 lakh and no house in his name. He had worked as a local AIMIM office bearer since 2022 and expressed his desire to contest this election. The party, he said, responded positively. He won by 1,523 votes, beating Sena’s Sonali Jadhav and Sena (UBT)’s Siddharth Usture. The seat was won by undivided NCP in 2017. In Vikhroli’s ward 124, Sena (UBT)’s Sakina Ayub Shaikh defeated by a big margin Sena’s Jyoti Khan, who had secured the seat in 2017 on an NCP ticket. Shaikh was at Shiv Sena Bhavan in Dadar on Sunday for a meeting with senior party leaders. Another minority community corporator of Sena (UBT) is Zeeshan Changez Multani from ward 62, which was won in 2017 by his family member, Multani Changej Jamal, who contested as an independent. Sena (UBT) roped in Jamal this time to ensure the defeat of party rebel Raju Pednekar, a former Thackeray loyalist who contested and lost the 2024 assembly polls as an independent after his request for a ticket was denied. Pednekar is now with Sena. Although Sena’s Muslim candidates did not hand it any win, they gave a good fight in some places. In ward 92 (Bharat Nagar near BKC), candidate Salim Qureshi lost to Congress despite deputy CM Eknath Shinde himself campaigning for him. “The work done on the ground matters. Shinde saheb came for my campaign and promised to resolve one of the issues and it was addressed immediately,” said Qureshi, whose wife won the seat for AIMIM in 2017.

13:15 (IST) Jan 19

Narendra Modi wants the BJP's Mayor, but he did not explain how. The BJP does not have a complete mandate. Shinde Sena's winning candidates are being kept in the Taj Lands End Hotel, almost like prisoners. The hotel has turned into a jail. Despite having the Centre's government and a strong CM, Devendra Fadnavis, in Maharashtra, these corporators remain locked up. Why are they so afraid?

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut

13:14 (IST) Jan 19

Mumbai Mayor Selection Live Updates: Sanjay Raut says Shinde Sena corporators 'being jailed at hotel'

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Monday alleged that the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has confined its winning candidates in a Mumbai hotel like prisoners, questioning what Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the BJP are afraid of. The remarks of the Sena UBT MP follow his earlier claims, in which he said that several new faces among the corporators are vouching for a non-BJP leader. "Narendra Modi wants the BJP's Mayor, but he did not explain how. The BJP does not have a complete mandate. Shinde Sena's winning candidates are being kept in the Taj Lands End Hotel, almost like prisoners. The hotel has turned into a jail. Despite having the Centre's government and a strong CM, Devendra Fadnavis, in Maharashtra, these corporators remain locked up. Why are they so afraid?" Raut questioned. As hotel politics make a comeback in Mumbai amid a speculated tussle for the BMC mayoral post, Shiv Sena (UBT) has accused Eknath Shinde of turning the hotel into a "jail".

12:51 (IST) Jan 19

Mumbai Mayor Live updates: ‘BMC Mayor Will Be from Mahayuti,’ says Eknath Shinde

Maharashtra deputy CM and Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde on Sunday said the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation will have a mayor from the ruling Mahayuti alliance. Speaking after meeting newly elected corporators in Mumbai, Shinde said voters had rejected “anti-development” forces and backed the BJP–Shiv Sena alliance to lead Mumbai’s civic administration.

Daily Puzzles

Connect

The Perfect Trace

Play Now

Loop The Loop

Puzzle Circuit

Play Now

Daily Crossword

Special puzzle

Play Now

Classic Matrix

Number Play

Play Now

Mini Crossword

Lite Challenge

Play Now

12:43 (IST) Jan 19

Mumbai Mayor Live updates: Fadnavis in Davos as mayor category lottery holds the key

With Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, attention now shifts to the January 22 lottery that will decide the reservation category for the mayor’s post. The election is expected later this month, keeping Mumbai’s top civic chair firmly in suspense.

12:42 (IST) Jan 19

Mumbai Mayor Live updates: Shinde says mayor will be from Mahayuti, BJP backs claim

Deputy chief minister and Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde on Sunday met the party's newly elected corporators at a hotel in Mumbai and said the BMC mayor will be from the Mahayuti. As the hotel politics make a comeback in Mumbai amid a speculated tussle for the mayoral post in the BMC, Shiv Sena (UBT) has accused Eknath Shinde of turning the hotel into a "jail". In the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, the BJP emerged as the largest party with 89 seats in the 227-member House. The Shiv Sena, led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, has won 29 seats. Speaking to reporters in Mumbai, after his meeting with corporators, Shinde said that the electors rejected "anti-development" while voting for the Yuti. He said, "I told them (corporators) about short-term, mid-term and long-term development plans to be carried out in phases. The state government will also offer help. There should be a feeling that our ward has to be good. They should pay attention to overall development in their respective wards." "Behind the BJP, Shiv Sena is the second largest party in a short time. We are taking forward Balasaheb Thackeray's views. People of Mumbai have embraced development and rejected anti-development. The people of Mumbai have shown their trust," he added.

12:42 (IST) Jan 19

Mumbai Mayor Live updates: Raut mocks Shinde, questions fear of defections

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut accused the Shinde camp of confining corporators out of fear, sarcastically calling the hotel a “jail.” He said no party could easily stake claim to the mayor’s post and claimed political churn was far from over.

12:41 (IST) Jan 19

Mumbai Mayor Live updates: Shinde faction shifts corporators to hotel, sparks opposition attack

Soon after the results, the Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde moved its newly elected corporators to a luxury hotel in Mumbai, citing orientation and training. The move revived memories of past political camps and triggered sharp reactions from rival parties.

12:41 (IST) Jan 19

Mumbai Mayor Live updates: BJP–Shinde alliance secures majority, mayor race opens in Mumbai

The BJP emerged as the single largest party with 89 seats in the 227-member Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, while the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena won 29 seats, giving the Mahayuti a clear majority. Shiv Sena (UBT) finished with 65 seats, setting the stage for an intense contest over Mumbai’s mayoral post.

Mumbai Mayor Selection Live Updates: With the BJP–Shiv Sena (Shinde) Mahayuti securing a clear majority in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, the battle for Mumbai’s mayoral post has intensified. Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut has questioned the shifting of corporators to luxury hotels, alleging fear of defections, even as Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde asserts that the next mayor will be from the Mahayuti. With sarcasm, counter-allegations, and a lottery to decide the mayoral category due on January 22, the suspense over Mumbai’s top civic post continues.

Trending