Pune: The fate of 57 local bodies in Maharashtra — 39 won by Mahayuti, 17 by MVA, and one by others/Independents — will now await the Supreme Court’s verdict on Jan 21, even after the results for president posts in the 40 municipal councils and 17 nagar panchayats were declared on Sunday.These 57 local bodies are among the 288 municipal councils and nagar panchayats where the combined reservation for scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and backward classes exceeds 50%.Acting on several petitions challenging the breach of quota limit, the apex court on Nov 29 said the election to these 57 seats would be subject to its final order. The verdict will also impact the results for the councillor posts in these civic bodies.“While the results were declared, those will depend on the final order,” an official from the State Election Commission (SEC) said on Monday.According to the data released by SEC on Sunday, Mahayuti won 207 president posts. BJP emerged as the single largest party with 117 seats, followed by Shiv Sena with 53 and NCP with 37. MVA was restricted to 44, with Congress bagging 28, Shiv Sena (UBT) nine and NCP (SP) seven seats. Others secured 37 posts.Despite a decisive lead, Mahayuti will have to wait for clarity on 39 of its victories (BJP: 30, Shiv Sena: five, NCP: four). The situation is no different for MVA’s 17 wins (Congress: 11, Shiv Sena-UBT: two, NCP-SP: four).A senior BJP politician said, “The mandate clearly favours Mahayuti, but we will respect the Supreme Court’s decision.”“Nearly two-fifths of our victories are under scrutiny. These reflect people’s mandate at the grassroots, and we hope the court ensures stability and does not unsettle elected bodies,” a Congress member said.Of Mahayuti’s tally, the 39 local bodies that breached the 50% reservation mark make up nearly 18.8% of its total wins. For MVA, the 17 bodies constitute about 38.6% of its victories.Political observers said the Jan 21 verdict could reshape local power equations. “For Mahayuti, the impact may be limited but politically important. For MVA, the stakes are much higher, as a large share of its already modest gains is at risk,” an analyst said.Of the 40 municipal councils, eight are in Nagpur district followed by seven in Chandrapur and five in Nashik, data shows.
