Shiv Sena marked a resounding victory in Ward No. 1 of Thane Municipal Corporation as candidates Siddharth Owalekar and Vikrant Tandel won by a significant margin. The results sparked jubilant celebrations among party workers and supporters along Ghodbunder Road, who commemorated the win by throwing colored powder in true festive spirit. The victory reinforces Shiv Sena’s strong presence in Thane, with party leaders crediting grassroots campaigning and community engagement for the win. Local residents also joined the celebrations, waving party flags and cheering for the newly elected representatives.In Thane, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena have joined hands. On the other side, Shiv Sena (UBT), the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), and the Sharad Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) are part of another alliance.
The Thane Municipal Corporation consists of 131 seats. Within the Mahayuti, the Shiv Sena is contesting 87 seats, the BJP 40, and the remaining four have been allotted to smaller allies. Among the opposition, Shiv Sena (UBT) is contesting 53 seats, the MNS 34, and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP 36 seats. The Ajit Pawar-led NCP, despite its alliance with the Sena and the BJP at the state and Centre, has fielded candidates in 75 seats. The Congress, which is part of the INDIA bloc, is also entering the race on its own in 96 seats.
The last civic polls took place in 2017. At that time, the united Shiv Sena under Uddhav Thackeray and the BJP chose to compete separately, even though they were allies at the state level. The Shiv Sena won 67 of the 131 seats and formed the municipal body independently. The NCP won 34 seats, while the BJP finished in third place with 23. Following the split within the Shiv Sena, the political equation in Thane changed. Out of the 67 corporators elected in 2017, 66 have since moved to the Eknath Shinde-led Sena.