‘No need to take Congress seriously in Mumbai’, says Shiv Sena (UBT) leader

AHead up of the high-stakes Brihanmumbai Municipal corp elections, scheduled for next month, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Anand Dubey on lord's day exuded trust, locution that "the real Shiv Sena" has consistently won the Mumbai Municipal Corporation elections and maintained its hold on the city for the past 30 years.He also took a dig at Congress, dismissing its relevance in Mumbai politics.In a self-made video, UBT leader Anand Dubey said, "There's no need to take the Congress party seriously in Mumbai. For the past 30 years, Congress has consistently lost the Mumbai Municipal Corporation elections, so what miracle will they perform in 2026? The Congress party in Mumbai is like a tourist. Come, roam around, put up hoardings, campaign, lose the election, and then go home."This came after the Congress party announced it would contest the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections alone.Congress leader Sachin Sawant said, "We have already clarified our position, and the Congress party wants to move forward on its own in the elections, and there is an ideological basis behind this. This was not a hasty decision; it was the unanimous opinion of the entire party. We are going to fight against any party that creates conflict in the name of religion, caste, region, or language. We want the election to be fought on the issue of development, not conflict."The Shiv Sena UBT leader further stated, "Mumbai's relationship has always been with the Shiv Sena. For the past 30 years, the real Shiv Sena has consistently won the Mumbai Municipal Corporation elections and maintained its hold on the city. This time too, on January 16, 2026, we will win...The Maha Vikas Aghadi, which includes Raj Thackeray's party, Sharad Pawar's party, our party, and other allies, are all fighting the election together and winning."For several decades, the undivided Shiv Sena had been a dominant political force in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), often governing the civic body in alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).In the last BMC elections held in 2017, the undivided Shiv Sena emerged as the single largest party, followed by the BJP. However, the upcoming BMC election will be the first since the split of the Shiv Sena in 2022.Meanwhile, the ruling has registered a decisive victory in the recently held local body elections. Elections on 286 Municipal Councils and Nagar Panchayats were held in two phases, as some councils went to polls on December 2, while the remaining cast their votes on December 20.Multiple key local bodies, including Baramati, Ambernath, went to the polls. Two councils saw candidates being elected unopposed, too, in Angar in Solapur and Dondaicha in Dhule.The local body elections also signal a run-up to the much awaited political contest set to happen in January 15, when multiple Municipal Corporations, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), Pune Municipal Corporations, and multiple other local body polls will be held. The voting for BMC and other bodies is set to happen on January 15, with counting to happen on January 16.