Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday congratulated the Mahayuti alliance leaders in Maharashtra after their strong performance in the state’s local body elections. The Bharatiya Janata Party claimed more than 150 wins and over 3,300 corporators elected across the state. He thanked Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, and all National Democratic Alliance workers.
"Thanks to the people of the state for giving overwhelming support to the Mahayuti in the Maharashtra Nagar Panchayat and Nagar Parishad elections. This victory is the people's blessings on the vision of the welfare of every section under the central and state governments of the NDA led by Modi ji. On this victory, I extend my best wishes to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde, and Ajit Pawar, and all the workers of the NDA," Amit Shah wrote on X.
He also congratulated BJP state president Ravindra Chavan and party workers for winning the maximum number of seats. "At the same time, congratulations to state president Ravindra Chavan, and all the workers of BJP Maharashtra for the BJP winning the maximum number of seats!" he said.
Counting began at 10 a.m. Sunday for 286 municipal councils and Nagar Panchayats. The elections were held in two phases, with some councils voting on December 2 and others on December 20.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said about 129 municipal council chairpersons have been elected from the BJP. He added that the three alliance parties – Shiv Sena, BJP and NCP (Ajit Pawar) – hold about 75% of the city council chairperson posts.
"First of all, I thank the people of Maharashtra. The people of the state have given massive support to the BJP and the Mahayuti. I had already predicted that out of all the municipal council chairpersons elected, 75% would be from the Mahayuti, and the people have delivered exactly that verdict. It has also become clear that the Bharatiya Janata Party is the number one party. So far, around 129 municipal council chairpersons have been elected from the BJP. Together, all three alliance parties account for 75% of the city council chairpersons. In terms of corporators, the BJP has created a record: 3300 corporators have been elected. This shows the massive public support we have received," Fadnavis said as quoted by ANI.
"I congratulate our allies Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, whose parties have also performed very well. Our performance has matched that of the Assembly elections. I also congratulate Ravindra Chavan, under whose leadership these elections were successfully conducted. Former president Bawankule, cabinet colleagues, and party workers — all have worked extremely hard. The coordination between the organisation and the party was excellent, and that is why we achieved this victory. This result is even better than 2017, and such a victory has not been seen in Maharashtra in the last 30–35 years," he added.
The local body elections set the stage for a larger political contest in January. Multiple municipal corporations, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and Pune Municipal Corporation, will go to polls on January 15, with counting scheduled for January 16.
(With inputs from agencies)