Overview
- Polling for 29 municipal corporations, including Mumbai, Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad, is set for January 15 with counting on January 16.
- Opposition parties flagged 67–68 uncontested wards statewide—45 BJP and 22 Shiv Sena in Mumbai alone—prompting MNS complaints in Thane and a Bombay High Court petition seeking a probe.
- Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis defended the unopposed results at rallies, citing past instances of uncontested elections, while Congress asked the State Election Commission to order re-polls in such wards.
- BJP ramped up a statewide push with rallies, roadshows and outreach in Nagpur and sought support from Uttar Pradesh leaders for Mumbai, as Uddhav and Raj Thackeray focused on shakha-level mobilization.
- Alliance strains surfaced with Ajit Pawar justifying an independent run in Pune and later saying his remarks on BJP were misrepresented, while BJP’s Chandrashekhar Bawankule revived questions about a case linked to Pawar and Shinde’s Sena split from BJP in Navi Mumbai.