Daughter of underworld don Arun Gawli and lone corporator of his Akhil Bharatiya Sena (ABS), Geeta Gawli, extended support to BJP for the upcoming mayoral elections in Mumbai.
Geeta Gawli's switch to the BJP came after dramatic developments on Thursday when she first went to Shiv Sena Bhavan. She was said to be in talks with senior Sena leaders Anil Desai and senior minister Eknath Shinde. However, she changed her mind and went to meet chief minister Devendra Fadnavis at his official residence Varsha later in the day.
After a round of discussion with BJP leaders, Gawli made it clear that she will be with BJP in upcoming mayoral elections on March 8.
As it stands today, five independent corporators declared their support for Shiv Sena—taking their total up to 89. With Geeta Gawli's support, BJP now has 83 corporators in its fold.
There is a strong chance that Congress may indirectly help Shiv Sena get its mayor elected by fielding its own candidate in the mayoral contest. Congress plans to field its nominee with the help of NCP and Samajwadi Party.
There are also indications that Raj Thackeray's MNS is considering the option to support Sena candidate. MNS has seven corporators.
Arun Gawli's ABS has been supporting Shiv Sena for the last ten years in the BMC. Geeta Gawli, it is learnt, was keen to head the health committee of the BMC for five years or she wanted to be included in the standing committee for five years. Shiv Sena was not keen to give her a continuous five year stint as she is the lone corporator of Gawli's ABS.