KALYAN: After its success in the Ambernath and Badlapur municipal councils, the BJP has intensified preparations for the Ulhasnagar Municipal Corporation (UMC) elections and is now moving towards contesting the polls independently. This shift has largely been triggered by the Shiv Sena’s growing proximity at the local level with Team Omie Kalani (TOK), a party considered a strong political rival of the BJP in Ulhasnagar.According to sources, the BJP is preparing to field candidates for all 78 seats of the UMC. More than 800 aspirants have already come forward, and interviews of these hopefuls have been completed. Despite several meetings between BJP and Shiv Sena leaders in Mumbai regarding the Mahayuti alliance, no meeting has taken place so far between local leaders of the two parties in Ulhasnagar concerning the civic elections.
The BJP has held the Shiv Sena responsible for the current deadlock, citing its local alliance with TOK. Notably, ahead of the elections, four former senior BJP corporators left the party and joined TOK, leading to visible differences between the BJP and Shiv Sena at that time.Speaking to TOI, BJP Ulhasnagar District president Rajesh Vadhrya said that no discussions on an alliance have been held with the Shiv Sena so far.Meanwhile, BJP election in-charge Pradeep Ramchandani stated that if the Shiv Sena wishes to form an alliance, seat-sharing must be discussed in clear terms. “The BJP had won 44 seats in the previous elections as part of the alliance, while Shiv Sena had won 25 seats. Only if Shiv Sena agrees to a similar arrangement and discusses the remaining nine seats will we move forward with talks,” he said.On the other hand, Shiv Sena city chief Rajendra Chaudhary claimed that the Shiv Sena, along with its local allies TOK and the SAI party, currently has the support of 55 corporators out of 78. “Under these circumstances, we are willing to offer the BJP the remaining 23 seats,” he said.Sources further revealed that the Shiv Sena has already begun local-level discussions with TOK and the SAI party, while its leaders appear to be avoiding talks with the BJP, adding to the political uncertainty ahead of the Ulhasnagar civic polls.
