Ritu Tawde is Mumbai Mayor: Fadnavis says BMC will run as per Balasaheb’s wishes

BJP’s three-time corporator Ritu Tawde from Ghatkopar West was elected unopposed as the Mayor of Mumbai’s civic body, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), on Wednesday, ending the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena’s 25-year reign over the richest civic body in India since 1997.

The Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Ghadi was also elected unopposed as Deputy Mayor.

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Both Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde and Deputy Mayor Sanjay Ghadi took over charge from Mumbai Municipal Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani in the presence of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The CM and his deputy were present at their swearing-in ceremony, bringing the curtains down on the political process that began with the municipal corporation elections in Maharashtra.

The BMC is India’s richest civic body, with its budget for 2025-26 pegged at Rs 74,450 crore, which is more than the budgets of several state governments.

Earlier, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray was keen to ensure that the BJP faces a tough contest, but later he accepted the reality of not having enough number of elected Sena corporators for such a contest and decided to back out of putting up candidates for the posts of Mumbai mayor and deputy mayor.

Earlier on Wednesday, a large police contingent was deployed outside BMC headquarters opposite the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) railway station, known as Victoria Terminus earlier, as Fadnavis arrived at the BMC headquarters. As the CM entered the BMC headquarters building, BJP corporators began chanting “Devabhau, Devabhau (Brother Devendra)” loudly, which was answered by the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena corporators who shouted “Chor Hai Chor Hai (He’s a thief)”.

There was a huge commotion even before the proceedings of the house began at the BMC headquarters. After a while, the atmosphere calmed down until BJP corporators began shouting pro-Modi slogans, which were countered by Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena corporators who retorted again with “Chor Hai, Chor Hai”.

Speaking to media persons after the proceedings of the house concluded, CM Fadnavis congratulated Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde and said, “Members of our Mahayuti grand alliance have been elected as the mayor and deputy mayor. Ritu Tawde is known as an experienced and transparent leader. She has taken an active role in solving the problems of Mumbaikars in the past. Sanjay Ghadi’s experience will also be useful as the deputy mayor”.

“Our effort will be to run the kind of administration expected by the late Hindu Hriday Samrat (Emperor of Hindu Hearts) Balasaheb Thackeray, on the occasion of his birth centenary. Our mayor, deputy mayor and all office bearers will together give a direction to this municipal corporation. They will fulfill the dreams of ordinary Mumbaikars. The Mahayuti alliance government will do the work of giving it full strength. Eknath Shinde and I will stand behind them with full strength. We will work to give momentum to the new Mumbai, which we will build through them,” Fadnavis said.

As per the new rules, BMC Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani was appointed as the presiding officer of the elections. However, the Shiv Sena-UBT objected to the change in rules made by the Fadnavis government through a notification regarding who should be the presiding officer during the election of the new mayor.

According to the earlier rule, the outgoing mayor or the senior-most corporator used to function as the presiding officer when the mayor was elected, but as per the new notification, the power to be the returning officer was given to an officer of the rank of the Principal Secretary. BMC Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani has the rank of Principal Secretary, and hence he functioned as presiding officer during the mayor’s election.

Also, the concept of an “outgoing mayor” was not applicable this time, since the term of the previous municipal council had already expired for almost three years. Yet, if the old rules had been followed, senior corporator Shraddha Jadhav of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena would have had the right to be the presiding officer during the election of the mayor.