Mumbai, Dec 16 (NationPress) On Tuesday, the BJP and Shiv Sena convened to strategize their alliance and determine seat distribution for the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections.

Maharashtra's Minister of Cultural Affairs and BJP's point person for the BMC elections, Ashish Shelar, shared that a seat-sharing arrangement has been established, aiming for a victory of over 150 seats out of a total of 227 in the BMC elections.

“Our focus is on securing more than 150 corporators in the BMC elections, while also collaborating with the Republican Party of India (RPI), led by Ramdas Athavale. We will reconvene in two days to finalize how many seats each party will contest,” he stated.

Shelar, indirectly referencing Uddhav Thackeray’s faction, criticized some for engaging in politics without cause by displaying posters.

“I have tweeted that the opportune moment has arrived; voters are set to reject those who have exploited the BMC’s funds over the past 25 years. The moment has come to defeat Shiv Sena UBT,” he remarked.

He also declared that the candidate for the MahaYuti mayor will be a Marathi individual, challenging Shiv Sena UBT to disclose their candidate's origins.

“Mumbai will always remain united,” Shelar emphasized, mocking Shiv Sena UBT and MNS for their insinuations that BJP intends to sever Mumbai from Maharashtra.

Notably absent from the meeting was the NCP, as Shelar suggested that an alliance with NCP, represented by former minister Nawab Malik for the BMC elections, is unlikely.

NCP leader Shivajirao Nalawade met with Shelar, advocating for NCP’s inclusion in the MahaYuti alliance.

“Malik is currently out on bail in a money laundering case. The entirety of the BJP-Shiv Sena strategy is centered on unseating Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT) from power in the BMC,” he noted.

Additionally, he stated that the campaign will underscore the corruption and mismanagement from the prior BMC administration.

“The meeting affirmed a cohesive narrative against the opposition, focusing on civic issues and the postponed elections. A local coordination committee has been set up to finalize the ward-wise candidate list and settle local disputes ahead of the election,” he explained.

This meeting marked the first gathering following the State Election Commission’s announcement of the BMC election schedule, with polling set for January 15 and counting on January 16.

Mumbai's BJP chief Ameet Satam and notable party legislators Atul Bhatkhalkar and Praveen Darekar attended the meeting, while Shiv Sena was represented by senior minister Uday Samant, who joined via video from the hospital due to medical care, along with Yogesh Kadam, former MP Rahul Shewale, and deputy leader Sheetal Mhatre.

The RPI was represented by senior leader Avinash Mahatekar.