BMC Polls: Mumbai Votes After 9-Year Gap, Thackeray Brothers Reunite

Speaking to IANS after casting his vote in the 2026 BMC elections, Gagrani said that essential facilities have been arranged at all polling stations in Mumbai.

"As you know, the voting process has begun today in municipal areas. In Mumbai, polling is underway smoothly at all locations. Essential facilities have been arranged at every polling station. Adequate police presence has been ensured, and our trained staff are available to assist voters," he said.

Appealing to voters, the BMC Commissioner urged citizens to actively participate in the democratic process.

"I request Mumbaikars to come out and vote. Voting is both your right and your duty. When you vote, the issues in your respective areas can be addressed effectively. Therefore, everyone should go and vote," he told IANS.

Polling is being conducted across 29 municipal corporations in Maharashtra, with a total of 3.48 crore voters eligible to decide the fate of 15,931 candidates. The spotlight remains firmly on the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, India's richest civic body, which has an annual budget of over Rs 74,400 crore. In the BMC elections, around 1,700 candidates are contesting for 227 seats. These elections are being held after a delay of nearly four years.

In Mumbai, BMC elections are taking place after a prolonged gap of nine years. To ensure law and order during the polling process, more than 25,000 police personnel have been deployed across the city.

The Mumbai civic polls have turned into a high-stakes political contest, with the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance facing a challenge from the reunited Thackeray brothers. After nearly two decades, Uddhav Thackeray of Shiv Sena (UBT) and Raj Thackeray of the Maharashtra Navnirmal Sena (MNS) have come together in a bid to reclaim their political influence and consolidate Marathi votes in the city.

The elections also mark the first BMC polls since the 2022 split in the Shiv Sena, when Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde broke away with the majority of party MLAs and formed the state government in alliance with the BJP. Shiv Sena had dominated the BMC for 25 years, from 1997 to 2022.

Counting of votes is scheduled to take place on January 16. Ahead of the polls, rival factions of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) have forged local alliances in cities such as Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad. Meanwhile, the Congress, once a dominant force in Maharashtra, has decided to contest independently in Mumbai, partnering with Prakash Ambedkar's Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi and the Rashtriya Samaj Paksh.

- IANS