ULHASNAGAR: The political contest in Ulhasnagar has turned more interesting this time as the Shiv Sena and the BJP are contesting the municipal elections separately. The situation became more volatile during the nomination process after the Shiv Sena entered into a local alliance with Team Omie Kalani and the SAI Party. Following this alliance, several Shiv Sena aspirants who were denied tickets were seen leaving the party at the last moment and filing their nominations as BJP candidates.A major political development was witnessed on Tuesday, the final day of nominations, when Shiv Sena’s Yuva Sena city president Bala Shrikhande, along with Shiv Sena office-bearer Keshav Ovelekar, suddenly quit the party. Both leaders filed their nomination papers as BJP candidates from different wards under Panel No. 1. Their exit was seen as a significant blow to the Shiv Sena’s organisational strength in the city.Apart from them, several other Shiv Sena leaders also switched sides and joined the BJP. Surekha Awhad filed her nomination on a BJP ticket from Panel No. 4, while Sandeep Dongre and Sunita Ghage filed their nominations from Panel No. 13 as BJP candidates.It is noteworthy that in Ulhasnagar, the Shiv Sena and the BJP have mostly contested elections together in the past. Traditionally, the BJP has had a strong hold in Sindhi-dominated areas, while the Shiv Sena has remained strong in Marathi-dominated localities. However, this time the Shiv Sena has chosen to contest independently by forming a local alliance with TOK and the SAI Party, both of which are considered influential in Sindhi-dominated areas. This strategy has put the Shiv Sena in direct confrontation with the BJP in regions where the latter has traditionally been strong.At the same time, the BJP was seen accommodating several disgruntled Shiv Sena leaders by offering them tickets in Marathi-dominated areas, thereby attempting to capitalise on internal dissatisfaction within the Sena.Despite these developments, the BJP also made some surprising decisions of its own. The party denied tickets at the last moment to two former sitting corporators, Dr Prakash Nathani and Rekha Thakur, and instead gave opportunities to new faces. In another unusual move, the BJP issued AB forms to two candidates—Rakesh Pathak and Juhi Khuslani—from the same ward and had both of them file their nomination papers, adding another layer of intrigue to the Ulhasnagar political contest. However later party declared Juhi Khuslani their party’s official candidate.Alongwith, Shiv Sena and BJP, the third Mahayuti alliance party NCP (AP) contesting seperate election on all panels. The MNS and Shiv Sena (UBT) contesting election in alliance while Congress have also fielded candidates seperately making poll intresting. Overall, the developments on the final day of nominations have significantly altered the political equations in Ulhasnagar, making the upcoming municipal elections highly competitive and unpredictable.
