Following the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) election results, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena faction has once again triggered resort politics by relocating its newly elected corporators to a five-star hotel in Mumbai. This strategic move comes as parties negotiate control of India’s richest civic body and guard against possible poaching or “horse-trading” ahead of key leadership decisions.
In the recent BMC polls, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 89 seats and Shinde’s faction secured 29 seats, giving the alliance a working majority. However, concerns about internal unity and rival overtures have prompted the precautionary hotel stay to keep elected members together during power-formation talks.
Shinde’s decision reflects the high-stake nature of the post-election phase, with political calculations not only about securing governance of the civic body but also bargaining for influential positions such as the mayor’s post and maintaining alliance cohesion.
