BMC Election : Voting today for 227 seats of Mumbai Municipal Corporation; Tight police security
The voting process for 227 seats of Mumbai Municipal Corporation is underway today, starting at 7:30 AM. This process will continue until 5:30 PM. As this is considered the richest and most important municipal corporation in the country, the entire state and the nation are focused on this election.
To ensure that the voting process in Mumbai proceeds peacefully and smoothly, tight security arrangements have been deployed. More than 25,000 police personnel are deployed for this election process. This includes 10 additional police commissioners, 33 DCPs, 84 ACPs, along with home guards, SRPF, and quick response teams. Special arrangements have been made at sensitive and highly sensitive polling stations, and surveillance is also being maintained through CCTV cameras.
The political equations in this election appear to be extremely competitive. A direct contest is seen between the ruling grand alliance and the opposition. BJP is contesting 137 seats while the Shiv Sena Shinde faction is contesting 90 seats. The grand alliance is making strong efforts to gain power over Mumbai. On the other hand, the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party has fielded candidates in 94 seats. The Shiv Sena Thackeray faction is contesting the most, with 163 seats, and MNS has fielded candidates in 52 seats. Therefore, special attention is focused on which side the Marathi voters in Mumbai will favor.
The Congress and Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi are contesting this election together. Congress has fielded candidates in 143 seats while Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi has fielded candidates in 46 seats. Therefore, there is a possibility of a multi-cornered contest, and the outcome in each ward is considered uncertain. The Mumbai Municipal Corporation election is not limited to just the local self-government body but is considered a precursor to the upcoming Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. Hence, today's voter verdict is expected to determine the direction of the state's politics. The counting of votes tomorrow will decide the power in Mumbai.