Several media reports suggest that 12 Congress corporators from Ambernath in the Thane District of Maharashtra are joining the BJP. However, Congress senior leader Vijay Namdevrao Wadettiwar denied reports saying that the party state chief is currently in talks with them.
Wadettiwar confirmed that 12 newly elected Congress councillors in the Ambernath Municipal Councilors, are currently discussing joining the ruling party, and no decision has been taken yet. "Our state president is currently in talks with them and is in constant contact. Discussions are ongoing and no decision has been taken yet," Wadettiwar told the media.
He said taking such a decision against the party after winning on party symbol will not be appropriate. "We will try to persuade them, because taking such a decision against the party, especially after being elected on the party symbol, would not be appropriate," said Wadettiwar.
Earlier, Maharashtra BJP president Ravindra Chavan announced the development at the BJP office on Wednesday that leaders are joining the party to by force or power, but by a shared commitment to development.
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"The people elected these councillors and they had promised development to the citizens. They have come with us because the government is working in a dynamic manner and is capable of delivering justice and development to the people," Chavan said.
The political churn follows the December 20 municipal council elections in Ambernath, located in Thane district, which resulted in a fractured mandate.
Following the December 20 elections, these councillors had formed the "Ambernath Vikas Aghadi" (AVA) with the BJP, leading to their suspension from the Congress . This alliance included the BJP and Congress, as well as the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) led by Ajit Pawar.
In the Ambernath Municipal Council election results, Shiv Sena (Shinde) emerged as the largest party, winning 27 seats, but falling four short of a majority. Meanwhile, the BJP secured 14 seats, the Congress 12, and the NCP 4. The BJP, bypassing the Shiv Sena, formed the "Ambernath Vikas Aghadi" with its arch rivals, the Congress and the NCP. Now, with the support of an independent, the strength of this three-party alliance has reached 32 councillors, exceeding the majority mark (30).
BJP State President Ravindra Chavan said that these councillors had promised development to the public and, seeing the dynamic working style of the current government, they decided to join the BJP. These councillors' departure from the Congress and joining the BJP has significantly strengthened the party's base at the local level.
This BJP-led alliance will now take over the leadership of the Ambernath Municipal Council. This is a major setback for the Shiv Sena, which, despite being close to a majority, fell short in the alliance's calculations.