BJP Names Ritu Tawde as Mumbai Mayor After 25 Years
Party ends Shiv Sena’s long control over BMC as ruling alliance secures majority
- BJP’s Ritu Tawde chosen as Mumbai’s mayoral candidate
- First non–Shiv Sena mayor in the city in 25 years
- Ruling BJP–Shiv Sena alliance crosses majority mark in BMC
- Civic polls held after nine-year gap in India’s richest municipal body
GG News Bureau
Mumbai, 7th Feb: In a major political shift in Mumbai’s civic landscape, the Bharatiya Janata Party has named corporator Ritu Tawde as its mayoral pick, marking the first time in 25 years that the post will not be held by the Shiv Sena.
Tawde, who represents Ghatkopar, previously served as Chairperson of the Education Committee of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). Her selection comes after the BJP emerged as the single largest party in the 227-member civic body.
As part of the ruling alliance arrangement, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Shankar Ghadi has been chosen as the Deputy Mayor. Elected from Ward No. 5 in the January 15 civic polls, Ghadi will hold the post for 15 months. The Shiv Sena plans to rotate the deputy mayoral position among four corporators during the term.
Ghadi was among the leaders who sided with Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde during the 2022 split in the Shiv Sena that led to the collapse of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government.
The BJP secured 89 seats in the civic polls, while the Shiv Sena won 29. Together, the alliance commands 118 corporators, comfortably crossing the majority mark of 114 required to control the corporation.
The Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), which governed the BMC continuously since 1997, won 65 seats. Its allies, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena secured six seats, while the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction) managed one. Among other parties, the Congress won 24 seats, AIMIM eight, the NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) three, and the Samajwadi Party two.
The high-stakes civic elections were held after a nine-year gap. Since March 2022, the municipal corporation had been run by a state-appointed administrator following the expiry of the previous elected body’s term.
The BMC, regarded as India’s richest municipal body, has a budget of ₹74,450 crore for the 2025–26 financial year, making control of the civic administration politically and financially significant.
