‘Dhurandhar Devendra’ posters go up across Mumbai as BJP emerges top force in BMC

Posters hailing Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis as “Dhurandhar Devendra” sprang up across several parts of Mumbai on Saturday, a day after the results of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections were declared.

The posters and large hoardings were put up by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Yuva Morcha Mumbai president Tajinder Singh Tiwana, who was himself elected as a corporator in the civic polls. The displays, praising Fadnavis’ leadership, underscored the celebratory mood within the BJP camp following its strong showing in elections to the country’s richest civic body.

According to official figures released by the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the BMC, the BJP emerged as the single largest party, winning 89 seats. The party polled 1,179,273 votes, accounting for 21.58% of the total votes cast. Among winning candidates, the BJP’s vote share stood at 45.22%, cementing its dominance in the civic body.





The BJP’s alliance partner, the Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde, secured 29 seats with 273,326 votes, translating into a 5.00% vote share. Together, the BJP–Shiv Sena (Shinde) alliance emerged as the largest bloc in the BMC.

On the opposition side, the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray faction), contesting in alliance with the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), won 65 seats. The UBT-led Sena polled 717,736 votes, or 13.13% of the total vote share, while the MNS added six seats with 74,946 votes, accounting for 1.37%.

The Indian National Congress secured 24 seats, polling 242,646 votes, or 4.44% of the total votes cast. Among other parties, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) won eight seats with 68,072 votes. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) won three seats, the Samajwadi Party two, and the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar faction) one.

Overall, winning candidates from recognised political parties together polled 2,607,612 votes, amounting to 47.72% of the total votes cast. The election saw 5,464,412 votes polled in total, with 11,677 voters opting for NOTA.

The results point to a fragmented yet competitive civic mandate, with pre- and post-poll alliances playing a decisive role in shaping the final composition of the BMC. (With inputs from ANI)