6 days after quitting BJP, 4 Navi Mumbai corporators join Sena

Six days after resigning from the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC), four former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) corporators joined the Shiv Sena on Sunday.

Six days after resigning from the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC), four former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) corporators joined the Shiv Sena on Sunday. The development comes as a major blow to the BJP, which is looking to win the civic polls in April.

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The former corporators, led by Suresh Kulkarni – a staunch loyalist of BJP legislator Ganesh Naik – along with his wife Radha Kulkarni, Sangeeta Waske and Mudrika Gawli were welcomed to the party by chief minister Uddhav Thackeray at his home Matoshree in Bandra (East). The CM tied the Shiv Bandhan (thread signifying allegiance to the party) on the wrists of the four leaders to formally induct them into the party.

“I have quit BJP due to the demand made by the people of my region in Turbhe, which comprises of a large Muslim and Dalit population. They are not comfortable with the party’s [BJP’s] policies and ideology,” Kulkarni said. When asked about his reason for joining the Shiv Sena, he said, “This is the wish of the people of my area.”

Reacting to the development, BJP Navi Mumbai chief Ramchandra Gharat said, “Four have gone but we are getting more than 40 office-bearers from the areas dominated by the Shiv Sena, NCP [Nationalist Congress Party] and Congress. Them leaving will not make a difference, as the party workers are with us. We are confident of winning three of their four seats and are working on the remaining one seat too.”

The four corporators had submitted their resignations from the NMMC to municipal commissioner Annasaheb Misal on February 17, a day after the BJP state executive meeting concluded in Navi Mumbai.

Kulkarni had reportedly been upset with some of his projects – including a foot overbridge on Thane-Belapur Road – being delayed, and his concerns over the Turbhe landfill site affecting the locals, not being addressed. He had however, denied these issues during his resignation.

Kulkarni, who holds sway in Turbhe, had ensured victory for Naik’s faction in at least four wards from the region in the NMMC election. Kulkarni would also ensure that Naik and candidates supported by him got surplus votes in Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. He had been made the chairman of the NMMC’s standing committee by Naik thrice – the same number of times Naik’s son Sandeep helmed the post.

“Ganesh Naik made him [Kulkarni] what he is today and gave him several posts. He will have to pay for the consequences of his betrayal,” Gharat said.