- The Bharatiya Janata Party’s electoral machinery relentlessly chugs forward, irrespective of the polls, is an understatement. Whether it is local polls, state assembly polls, or parliamentary polls, the BJP’s purposeful forward march through its formidable electoral machinery is unparalleled. No election is taken lightly, with great importance attached to every single contest that the party fights. Most admirably, the party’s leadership accords immense significance to every poll without ever taking its foot off the pedal. Little wonder that other political parties must be in awe of the way the saffron brigade goes about immersing itself during campaigns. The preparations start months in advance. And no complacency is allowed to seep in. Amazing.
PC: News18
- People closely following the fortunes of the political churning in the country would have noticed how Maharashtra’s landscape has realigned courtesy of defections/splits. Much to the delight of the BJP, the state’s local body polls show how the party is getting politically stronger. That gives it a headstart in the BMC poll campaign. The truly high-stakes BMC elections are scheduled for next month. Maharashtra local body polls, held after almost a decade, are significant in that context, as much as on their own. Right from the start of the poll campaign for municipal councils and nagar panchayats, the chief contest seemed to be between the BJP and the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, who fought separately in most places.
PC: BBC
- Maha Vikas Aghadi trailed in putting up an aggressive fight. BJP’s lead in more than 100 of the 288 local bodies, and Shiv Sena’s number two position, reveal that early perceptions were correct. Poll results also show that the BJP has struck deep roots in rural parts of the state, besides cementing its dominance in the urban belt. It even succeeded in shaking Eknath Shinde in his home turf of Thane district, by wresting the council president’s posts in the twin urban centres of Badlapur and Ambernath. Here, the state-level allies fought a bitter political battle against each other, with Shinde’s party maintaining its lead in terms of overall member seats in both councils. So, despite a little setback, he has very much held his own in these first local elections since the splits.
PC: Deccan Herald
- Ajit Pawar of NCP has similarly delivered a good performance in most councils and nagarpanchayats, and held on to his turf. In all, governing Mahayuti has dominated more than 200 of 288 local bodies. Maha Vikas Aghadi, therefore, is looking at a huge question mark as the state heads into the second and bigger phase of the polls. Going for elections in mid Jan will be 29 municipal corporations, including India’s richest civic body. BJP and Mahayuti are expected to carry forward their current energy and momentum. But MVA faces a big challenge in even staying together for the Jan 2026 fight, let alone unsettling the in-form alliance. Congress is struggling to revive itself. It’s an advantage for the BJP-Mahayuti juggernaut in Mumbai and other corporations.
