As Maharashtra gears up for crucial municipal corporation elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has stepped up efforts to bring leaders from rival parties into its fold across key urban centres. While the move aims to strengthen the party’s position, it is causing friction among long-standing BJP workers.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders Prithviraj Sutar, Sanjay Bhosale and Ashwini Bhosale joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday. (HT)
From Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad to Solapur and other parts of western Maharashtra, opposition leaders have been inducted ahead of civic polls, often overriding objections from local units and sitting leaders. This top-down, results-focused approach is at odds with sentiment at the grassroots level.
In Pimpri-Chinchwad, the induction of Rahul Kalate went ahead despite resistance from sections of the local BJP leadership. Party insiders say the move has created unease among grassroots workers, who fear being sidelined as new entrants are accommodated ahead of ticket distribution.
Earlier last week, several prominent NCP leaders from Pimpri-Chinchwad, including Prabhakar Waghere, former standing committee chairman Prashant Shirole, Sanjog Waghere, Usha Waghere, Raju Misal and others, joined the BJP at a large event held in Mumbai in the presence of BJP state president Ravindra Chavan.
A local BJP leader from Pimpri-Chinchwad said, “Kalate contested the assembly elections against two BJP candidates. Now how are we expected to work for him? There are many loyal BJP workers aspiring for tickets, but despite our opposition, party leaders inducted him. No one is caring for loyal workers.”
In Pune too, a series of inductions has raised similar concerns. In the past week, several opposition leaders, including Sachin Dodke from the NCP (Sharad Pawar faction), Sayali Wanjal, Balasaheb Dhankawade, Surendra Patahre, Amol Devdekar, Pruthviraj Sutar and Sanjay Bhosale, joined the BJP at a grand event.
The discord became more visible in Solapur, where the BJP inducted former Congress leader Dilip Mane despite open opposition from BJP MLA Subhash Deshmukh. Addressing a press conference, Deshmukh said he had not given “even one percent consent” to Mane’s entry into the party. “I have no information about this. The guardian minister had said I would be consulted, but I received no information in this regard,” he said.
Deshmukh said discussions were held with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, during which he conveyed the sentiments of party workers. He said workers had also personally expressed their concerns to the leadership. “When the chief minister asked me again, I reiterated that my stand remains unchanged,” Deshmukh said.
He added that he was later asked to speak with BJP state president Ravindra Chavan and conveyed the same position to him as well.
Similar induction drives have been reported from other parts of western Maharashtra. In Kolhapur, a traditionally Congress-dominated civic space, several former corporators and local leaders from rival parties are in the queue to join the BJP. Former Congress leader Vinayak alias Appi Patil has already joined the BJP’s Kolhapur unit.
In the newly formed Ichalkaranji municipal corporation, two former municipal council deputy presidents Ajitmama Jadhav and Ravi Rajpute, NCP state secretary Vitthal Chopade, and several former corporators and local leaders, including Shubhangi Mali, Dilip Hukkire, Tanaji Harale, Shrikant Kambale and Raju Khot, joined the BJP in the presence of Ravindra Chavan in Mumbai.
From Sangli, Jayashree Patil, granddaughter-in-law of former Congress leader and former chief minister Vasantdada Patil, along with her supporters, joined the BJP, alleging neglect by her party. In the district, leaders with strong ward-level influence from Congress and NCP factions have entered the BJP fold, a move seen as an attempt to neutralise local opposition vote banks.
Political analysts say the BJP is selectively inducting influential opposition leaders in regions where its organisational strength at the local level is perceived to be weak. By bringing in leaders with established local support bases, the party aims to strengthen its electoral arithmetic in closely fought municipal contests. However, the strategy also exposes vulnerabilities and raises questions about internal cohesion.
Observers warn that the BJP may soon face a “problem of plenty”, with an influx of new entrants intensifying competition for municipal corporation tickets and fuelling resentment among long-time party workers. Such tensions, if left unaddressed, could affect campaign coordination and booth-level mobilisation.
As civic polls draw closer, the BJP’s aggressive induction drive underlines its determination to dominate local power centres. Whether this top-down strategy delivers electoral dividends or deepens internal fault lines will be tested when voters head to the polls.
