"Mumbai's Mayor should be from Mahayuti": Ramdas Athawale on BMC elections

New Delhi [India], January 3 (ANI): Union Minister and Republican Party of India (RPI) chief Ramdas Athawale said that the next Mayor of Mumbai should be from the Mahayuti alliance, amid ongoing discussions on seat-sharing for the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections.
Speaking to ANI on Friday about the 2026 BMC elections, Athawale said his party would remain part of the Mahayuti alliance and support the formation of a Mahayuti-led civic body in Mumbai.
"Mumbai's mayor should be from our mahayuti... We are contesting on 20 seats, on the remaining places our party will support BJP and Shiv Sena... We are contesting elections with the mahayuti, but on some seats we are contesting separately," Athawale said.
He further asserted that the RPI has taken a firm decision to remain with the ruling alliance. "We will stay with the mahayuti in this election, and to make a mayor of the mahayuti, the Republican Party will stay with the BJP, Shiv Sena, and NCP. My party has taken this decision," he added.
Earlier, Athawale accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of sidelining his party during seat-sharing talks for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections.
Highlighting the RPI's political strength in Mumbai, Athawale had said the reunion of the BJP and Shiv Sena had adversely affected his party's chances, adding that the RPI was not even included in seat-sharing discussions. He claimed that the party was informed very late that it had been allotted just six seats.
"The coming together of the BJP and Shiv Sena created a problem in giving tickets to the RPI. The Republican Party is very strong in Mumbai... But the BJP has ignored us... We were not contacted at all during the discussions. If the RPI had been called to the BJP-Shiv Sena discussions, some seats could have been allocated to us... Last night at 2 am, we were told that six seats had been given to us," Athawale had told ANI on Tuesday.
After expressing dissatisfaction with the seat-sharing arrangements within the Mahayuti ahead of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls, BJP MLC Pravin Darekar assured that Republican Party of India (RPI) chief Ramdas Athawale is "not upset" and remains with the Mahayuti alliance.
Speaking to reporters after meeting Athawale on Tuesday (30th December), Darekar said that his participation in the government and his respect will be ensured in a "dignified manner".
Polling for 29 municipal corporation elections across the state, including Mumbai, Pune, and Pimpri-Chinchwad, will be held on January 15, with vote counting scheduled for January 16. (ANI)