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5d ago

Thackeray Cousins Seal Shiv Sena (UBT)–MNS Alliance for BMC Elections

The tie-up seeks to consolidate Marathi voters as the ruling Mahayuti publicly downplays its impact.

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Mumbai, India - March 24, 2022: Ex-CM and Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly Devendra Fadnavis during the State Budget Session at Vidhan Bhavan, in Mumbai, India, on Thursday, March 24, 2022. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/Hindustan Times) (Anshuman Poyrekar/HT PHOTO)
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Overview

  • Uddhav and Raj Thackeray announced their alliance at a joint press conference after paying respects at Bal Thackeray’s memorial, with a pledge that Mumbai’s next mayor will be a Marathi leader from their camp.
  • The partners said they will contest together in Mumbai, Nashik and other municipal corporations on January 15, 2026, but withheld ward-level seat-sharing details.
  • Unconfirmed reports suggest a BMC split of roughly 145–150 seats for Shiv Sena (UBT) and 65–70 for MNS, which neither party has officially validated.
  • BJP leaders Devendra Fadnavis and Eknath Shinde dismissed the reunion as a bid for political survival and predicted limited electoral impact; BMC results are slated for January 16.
  • Congress has decided to run separately in Mumbai, and analysts are split on whether the reunion will meaningfully consolidate Marathi votes given organisational and coordination challenges.