In Maharashtra, the post of mayor in Thane's Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC) has been reserved for the Scheduled Tribes (ST) category. This was determined by a lottery conducted by the Maharashtra Urban Development Department on Thursday. The lottery determines the category for which the mayor's post will be reserved, such as General, Women, SC, ST, and OBC categories. Once the category is announced, eligible candidates file their nominations.
The BJP, despite having a strength of 50 corporators, is already out of the race since it does not have a single corporator from the ST category. According to reports, the saffron party had a "two-and-a-half-years-each" deal in place with its Mahayuti partner, which has effectively turned into a car without an engine.
Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena has two councillors from the ST category, while the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) has one.
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In the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation, Shiv Sena-Shinde has 53 corporators, along with the support of five MNS corporators and four from the Thackeray faction. According to local media, the Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction has been making strenuous efforts to break away the remaining corporators of the Thackeray group. For the past eight months, the BJP had been asserting that only a BJP mayor would take charge of the corporation, Loksatta said in a report.
The civic elections were contested as an alliance between the Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) and the BJP, with a difference of just three corporators between them in terms of numbers. Still, to avoid having to depend on others to form power in the corporation, MP Dr Shrikant Shinde has initiated strong efforts to reach the majority mark of 62. In this situation, with the mayor’s post reserved for the Scheduled Tribes category, the path has been cleared for the Shiv Sena to appoint its own mayor. This has also spared the party from the BJP’s persistent demand for a two-and-a-half-year mayoral term. If the Shiv Sena shows magnanimity, it could generously allow the final two and a half years of the mayor’s term to go to the MNS.
Who are the candidates?
From the Shiv Sena, Advocate Harshali Vijay Chaudhary-Thavil, representing Ward No. 3B in Kalyan, and Kiran Rajaram Bhangale from Ward No. 1B are Scheduled Tribe corporators, Loksatta said in a report. From the MNS, Sheetal Mahesh Mandhari, elected from Ward No. 15B in Kalyan East, is a Scheduled Tribe corporator. All eyes are now on which of the two Shiv Sena corporators will win the “mayoral lottery”.