Lalbaug to Meghdoot: Shah has an eventful Mumbai trip

On his first visit to Mumbai since the Eknath Shinde-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government assumed office, union home minister Amit Shah struck a balance between his religious devotion and political priorities

On his first visit to Mumbai since the Eknath Shinde-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government assumed office, union home minister Amit Shah struck a balance between his religious devotion and political priorities.

Union home minister Amit Shah along with his wife Sonal Shah worships lord Ganesh at the residence of deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday. ANI

The senior BJP leader, who arrived in the city on Sunday night, wanted to make an early start on Monday.

In the morning, Shah took the blessings of Lalbaugcha Raja. He then took darshan of Ganpati at Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar’s Bandra home, and at Varsha and Sagar, the official residences of chief minister Shinde and deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis respectively.

After the spiritual tour, he reviewed the party’s preparations for the polls to India’s richest civic body - Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. Shah chaired a meeting of senior leaders, legislators, corporators, and office-bearers at Meghdoot, a bungalow allocated to Fadnavis, in the afternoon.

The union minister set a target to win 150 seats in the 227-member house and wanted to teach the party’s bête noire, Shiv Sena, a lesson, people privy to the discussions said.

“We are going to make an aggressive campaign for major civic bodies, including the BMC. It will be similar to that of the strategy the party had adopted for the Hyderabad civic polls in 2020,” a BJP leader, wishing not to be named, said.

In the last BMC elections, the BJP had secured 82 seats while Sena had bagged 84 seats. Sena has been ruling the civic body for the last three decades.

In the evening, Shah inaugurated AM Naik School set up by AM Naik, group chairman, Larsen & Toubro, at Powai.

“If you see the students as the future of the country then your attitude towards them will change. You have to ignore their drawbacks as they know nothing about this world and have no experience. It is you who will change them and convert their demerits into merits,” Shah said, referring to the teachers present at the event.

Before leaving for Delhi, he held a core committee meeting of the state BJP unit at the city airport.

BJP national president JP Nadda is also likely to come on a two-day visit to the state on September 15 and 16. He is expected to hold several meetings with party leaders and finalise the strategy for the civic polls.