"Great privilege to participate in this festival of democracy": Piyush Goyal casts vote in Maharashtra local body elections

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], January 15 (ANI): Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday cast his vote along with his wife at a polling booth in Mumbai's Malabar Hills during the Maharashtra Local Body 2026 elections.
Speaking to reporters, Goyal described voting as a "festival of democracy" and said it was a privilege to participate in the process. Calling Mumbai India's financial and commercial capital, he said Mumbaikars take pride in the city and view the nation's journey toward development and prosperity through Mumbai's progress and growth.
He urged citizens to exercise their right to vote, describing it as a duty toward their beloved city. Emphasising good governance, rapid development, and the well-being of every resident, Goyal said Mumbai's success plays a crucial role in strengthening India's position on the global stage.
"It is a great privilege to participate in this festival of democracy. Mumbai is India's financial and commercial capital. We are all proud to be Mumbaikars. We see the future of a developed and prosperous nation through the lens of Mumbai's progress and growth. I appeal to every Mumbaikar to exercise their right to vote as a duty towards their beloved city for good governance, for fast-paced progress, for ensuring the well-being of every resident of Mumbai and to guarantee India's success on the global stage, which starts from Mumbai," Piyush Goyal said.
Twenty-nine municipal corporations across Maharashtra go to the polls today as a high-voltage campaign comes to an end, setting the stage for a decisive political contest in key urban centres including Mumbai, Pune, Nashik, Nagpur, Navi Mumbai, Thane and Pimpri-Chinchwad.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiv Sena are contesting the civic elections as allies under the Mahayuti banner, except in Pune, while the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has chosen to fight independently in most corporations.
However, in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad, both NCP factions have come together under a joint manifesto.
The main political battle remains centred on Mumbai and Pune, where the BJP-led Mahayuti will face the united Thackeray camp, as just ahead of the Civic poll, both parties' Raj Thackeray and Uddhav Thackeray joined hands on the issue of Marathi Manus in a high-stakes fight for control of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the country's richest civic body. The last BMC elections were held in 2017.
In Pune, in a major political realignment, both factions of the NCP came together just before the civic polls for the PMC, following a split in 2023. Ajit Pawar joined hands with Sharad Pawar again and contested against the NDA partner BJP in Pune, whereas Shiv Sena, led by Eknath Shidne opted to go solo in PMC after failing to set up an acceptable seat-sharing formula with BJP.
According to the State Election Commission, a total of 3.48 crore voters are eligible to cast their ballots to decide the fate of 15,908 candidates contesting 2,869 seats across 893 wards in 29 municipal corporations. A total of 39092 Polling centre has been set up across the state.
Polling will be held on January 15 from 7.30 am to 5.30 pm, with vote counting scheduled to begin on Friday, January 16. (ANI)