‘Money and muscle’: Why Opposition workers are crying foul in Maharashtra civic polls

On December 30, Bala Parab was doing the rounds of neighbourhoods in Maharashtra's Kalyan West, campaigning for the civic polls being held in the state after a four-year delay, when he got a call from an aide.

Three corporators of the Bharatiya Janata Party had been declared winners in three wards of the Kalyan Dombivali Municipal Corporation, even before a single vote had been cast, the aide told Parab, a veteran worker of Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena.

The reason – all the candidates in the fray had withdrawn from the poll that had been scheduled for January 15.

Parab was perturbed. The next day brought worse news.

Six candidates – two from the BJP and four from the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena – were declared unopposed victors by the returning officer.

By January 2, that figure had gone up to 20, with 14 BJP candidates and six from Shinde Sena being declared winners. “I have spent 45 years in politics, I have never seen anything like this,” Parab told Scroll.

Across Maharashtra, a similar – and unprecedented – story played out.

Of the 2,869 seats, 69 had been won by January 2 – barring one, all went to the ruling Mahayuti alliance. The BJP was the biggest gainer – 44 of its candidates won unopposed, followed by Shinde's Shiv Sena with 22 seats. Two seats were won by Nationalist Congress Party, led by Ajit Pawar, and one by Islam Party in Malegaon.

In previous civic polls in 2017, 11 candidates had won unopposed across the state.

Observers said the absolute domination of the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance raises questions about a fair playing field. Political commentator Harish Wankhede said, “Unopposed elections suggest some form of malpractice.”

The results left Opposition workers both angry and demoralised. They accused the ruling alliance of spending hefty sums to “coerce” candidates not to contest. Several have approached the courts seeking redress.

The no-contests are a worrying sign, they said. “If this becomes a trend, I am afraid of what can happen in future,” Parab said.

As news of the withdrawals spread, leaders of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena and Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena scurried to herd their candidates into safe houses. But the damage had been done.

The maximum withdrawals of candidates were in Kalyan Dombivali Municipal Corporation and Jalgaon Municipal Corporation, where the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance has already won 16% of the seats, followed by Thane and Bhiwandi where six corporation seats were won in each.

“This is a dangerous precedent,” Alpesh Bhoir, Kalyan district head of Shiv Sena (UBT). “They did this during the Surat and Indore Lok Sabha elections. This is undemocratic.”

In 2024, as Scroll had reported, Opposition candidates had been disqualified or dropped out of the fray in the Surat Lok Sabha poll. In Indore, the Congress candidate had crossed over to the BJP ahead of the election.

Parab alleged that several Independent candidates and at least four candidates from the Uddhav Thackeray-Shiv Sena were “coerced to withdraw” in Dombivali. “Money and muscle power has been used to pressure them,” he claimed.

When asked about Parab's claims, a Shiv Sena spokesperson directed Scroll to a video of party leader Eknath Shinde.

In the clip, Shinde does not address the allegation, but refers to the victory in 68 seats for the ruling alliance. “This has happened for the first time in Maharashtra's political history. This victory paves way for a historic win for Mahayuti in civic elections,” Shinde told party workers in the clip. “I congratulate all candidates who have won.”

Naresh Mhaske, Member of Parliament in Thane, did not respond to calls or messages.

Senior BJP leaders Ravindra Chavan and Gulabrao Jule did not respond to calls.

Avinash Jadhav, the Thane district head of MNS, told Scroll: “In Kalyan and Dombivali, most seats have only two to three candidates unlike in Mumbai wards, where there are multiple candidates. So it is easier to coerce them.” Not a single seat in Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has seen an unopposed candidate.

On January 5, Jadhav filed a writ petition in the Bombay High Court alleging that “systemic coercion, threats, or illegal allurements” had been used to pressure candidates to withdraw. Jadhav also demanded that the state Election Commission conduct a probe.

“They are not just spending on election campaigning,” Jadhav told Scroll, alleging that the BJP and Shinde-led Sena had offered hefty amounts to persuade candidates to drop out. “They are also spending to squeeze out Opposition candidates.”

The Aam Aadmi Party filed a complaint with the State Election commission, asking that voters of the 69 wards be allowed to opt for NOTA, or None of the Above.

On December 31, with only a couple of days left to withdraw nominations, Dr Dhanaraj Kohachade was in the middle of a busy campaign on a Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray) ticket from Khadakpada, Kalyan.

Around that time, members of the rival Shinde-led Sena began to visit his home, Kohachade told Scroll. Each time, he they would ask him to withdraw his candidature. This went on for three days, he said.

“On January 1, when I had gone to Matoshree [Uddhav Thackeray's home], they visited my home with a large bag,” he said. “They tried to convince my wife to ask me to withdraw. They asked her to quote a figure,” Kohachade, who is contesting elections for the first time, claimed.

On the last day of withdrawal of nominations, January 2, Kohachade said the men returned and waited till 3 pm near his building. “They said if I refuse there may be consequences. The threat was very subtle,” Kohachade said.

Sena leader Naresh Mhaske did not respond to Kohachade's allegation.

Questions are also being raised about the neutrality of election officials.

In South Mumbai, eight candidates have approached the Bombay High Court, alleging that the returning officer did not accept their nomination following pressure by BJP leader Rahul Narwekar.

In Thane, Dipti Jabar, a candidate of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena, has

filed a complaint with the state Election Commission and approached the Bombay High Court over her nomination being rejected. Jabar was in the running for a ward in Thane's Wagle Estate.

Jabar's husband, Dinesh, said he witnessed a “clear collusion between the police, Election Commission and the ruling party”. “In our ward, four Independent candidates were forced to withdraw,” he alleged. “My wife's form was rejected by the returning officer. She claimed she never got our affidavit even though we submitted it well before the deadline.”

State election commissioner Dinesh Waghmare told Scroll that the EC cannot interfere in decisions taken by returning officers. “The role of returning officer is quasi-judicial. If they take a decision, we cannot question it,” he said. “The only remedy is for the candidate to file a writ petition in court.”

But Jabar fears that by the time the court takes notice, the elections will be over.

Kedar Dighe, nephew of the late Shiv Sena leader Anand Dighe, said the conduct of EC has left party workers “demotivated”. “If everything can be manipulated, why will people even come to vote?” he said.

The municipal elections have left the Opposition workers outplayed and outmaneuvered, several workers admitted.

In Thane Municipal Corporation, where Shinde-led Sena's six candidates have been announced as unopposed victors, both the MNS and the Uddhav-led Shiv Sena are working hard to draw back focus on civic issues like drainage, water shortage, and traffic.

But Mayur Jain, who is contesting for the first time on Shiv Sena UBT ticket, said the main challenge is lack of funds “Money is flowing [on that side].”

Like Jain, several candidates from the Shiv Sena UBT are contesting for the first time because seasoned corporators have left the party in droves. “The newcomers will benefit from the anti-incumbency against long-time corporators, but it has also limited their ground reach because not many people know them,” a Thane-based leader told Scroll.

Wankhede, the political commentator, said the Opposition parties, from the Congress to Shiv Sena (UBT), MNS and Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar), have failed to protect their candidates – or even make the charges of money power an election issue. “When candidates withdraw, a message is sent out to voters that the party is not strong enough.”

Opposition candidates are also finding it difficult to convince voters, given that the lack of funds in the last few years hampered their ability to deliver results. As The Indian Express has reported, 99% of development funds in Mumbai have gone to the wards won by the ruling alliance in the last three years.

In Kurla, Congress candidate and former corporator Ashraf Azmi admitted he was unable to solve civic issues in the past three years. “We had no funds, no power. Funds were only given to wards under the ruling party. How do I explain this partiality to my voters?” a frustrated Azmi asked.

On the ground, voters appeared indifferent to the Opposition's plight. In Thane, auto rickshaw driver Kiran Jaiswal praised Shinde's Sena for getting work done quickly. “We will vote for those who can get funds for civic work like roads and water.”

He was unperturbed by seats being won without a contest. “People don't have time to discuss democracy. We are more concerned about [earning] our daily bread.”

Source: Scroll
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