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BJP-led alliance tightens grip on western Maharashtra civic bodies
BJP registers a crushing victory in western Maharashtra, sweeping key urban civic bodies and pushing the Congress, NCP and other opposition parties to the margins in most cities
Pune: With vote counting almost complete across Maharashtra’s 29 municipal corporations, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has registered a crushing victory in western Maharashtra, sweeping key urban civic bodies and pushing the Congress, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and other opposition parties to the margins in most cities.
While in major urban centres such as Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad as well, the BJP has emerged as the dominant force, further consolidating its urban footprint. In Solapur, one of the most closely watched contests in the region, the BJP has emerged as the single largest party and appears poised to form the civic body government. Early trends indicated a clear lead for the party despite a crowded contest involving Congress, NCP factions, Shiv Sena factions, the MNS and others.
As per officials, the BJP led in a majority of the total wards (around 63 out of 102). The party has so far secured 78 seats, followed by the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) with eight seats, Shiv Sena with four, and one seat each for the NCP and Congress.
In the Solapur Municipal Corporation elections, the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) and the NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) had finalised a seat-sharing formula, contesting 51 seats each. Guardian Minister Jaykumar Gore inducted several opposition leaders into the BJP and fielded them as party candidates, a move that reportedly caused unease among senior BJP leaders such as Subhash and Vijay Deshmukh.
Speaking to the media after the victory, Gore said, “This victory is dedicated to the people of Solapur and our party workers who put in sustained efforts on the ground.”
Once considered a Congress stronghold, Solapur’s results underline the party’s continued struggle to retain relevance in the city.
In the Sangli-Miraj-Kupwad Municipal Corporation, the BJP dominated by winning 39 of the 78 seats, followed by Congress with 18, NCP with 16, NCP (SP) with three and Shiv Sena with two. While ward-wise counting is still underway, trends indicate a strong BJP performance across urban centres in the region.
Kolhapur recorded high voter turnout and delivered a split verdict, with Congress emerging as the single largest party, the only municipal corporation in Western Maharashtra where it achieved this position. The outcome highlights the city’s distinct political dynamics, where local leadership and candidate reputation continue to shape voter choices.
In the newly formed Ichalkaranji Municipal Corporation, which held its first civic elections this cycle, voter turnout touched nearly 70 per cent, the highest among municipal corporations in the state. The BJP-led coalition is currently leading with 43 seats, followed by Shiv Shahu Aghadi with 17.
Ahilyanagar (formerly Ahmednagar) also witnessed robust participation, with turnout at around 64 per cent. In the 68-seat civic body, the Mahayuti alliance emerged dominant, with the NCP led by Ajit
Pawar becoming the single largest party with 27 seats, followed closely by the BJP with 25, while the Shiv Sena led by Shinde secured 10 seats.
Overall, the results across Western Maharashtra, marked by the BJP’s dominance in Solapur, strong performances in Ichalkaranji and Sangli, and competitive outcomes in Kolhapur and Ahilyanagar, point to a shifting urban political landscape where alliance strategies, governance narratives, and candidate appeal are playing decisive roles ahead of future state and national elections.
