‘This Battle Is Not Over…’: Shiv Sena (UBT) Reacts After BMC Loss

Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) (UBT) on Saturday gave its first reaction following the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, striking a defiant tone and signalling that the political fight in Maharashtra is far from over and will continue until the Marathi community receives the respect it deserves.

In a post shared on social media platform X, Shiv Sena (UBT) said, “This battle is not over yet… It will continue just like this until the Marathi person receives the respect they deserve!”

Meanwhile, the BMC elections saw the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) alliance emerge as the single largest bloc, while the Shiv Sena (UBT) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) alliance also secured a significant share of seats and votes across Mumbai.

According to official figures released by the Election Commission 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. Its alliance partner, the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction), secured 29 seats with 2,73,326 votes, translating into 5.00 per cent of the total vote share.

Together, the BJP-Shiv Sena (Shinde) alliance emerged as the largest bloc in the BMC.

On the other side, the Shiv Sena (UBT), contesting in alliance with the MNS, won 65 seats. The UBT-led Sena polled 7,17,736 votes, accounting for 13.13 per cent of the total votes cast. The MNS added 6 seats to the alliance tally, with 74,946 votes and a 1.37 per cent vote share.

The Indian National Congress (INC) secured 24 seats, polling 2,42,646 votes, which represents 4.44 per cent of the total vote share.

Among other parties, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) won 8 seats with 68,072 votes, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) secured 3 seats, the Samajwadi Party won 2 seats, and the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) won 1 seat.

Overall, winning candidates from recognised political parties polled 26,07,612 votes, amounting to 47.72 per cent of the total votes cast. The total number of votes polled in the election stood at 54,64,412, while 11,677 voters opted for NOTA.

While Uddhav and Raj Thackeray tried to consolidate votes over the Marathi language and the revival of the Marathi manoos identity plank, the saffron Yuti’s development work, including the Metro Aqua Line and Coastal Road, helped them gain a lead in the BMC polls.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the BJP-Shiv Sena-led victory in the Maharashtra civic polls, attributing the win to the “pro-people good governance” agenda. Expressing gratitude to the electors, PM Modi said that the NDA’s “vision for development has struck a chord” with the people of the state.

Addressing the BJP workers at the party office in Mumbai, Devendra Fadnavis said, “BJP and Mahayuti are going to form their 25 mayors after these elections.” (ANI)