Vote Counting Begins For 29 Municipal Corporations In Maharashtra Including BMC

Counting of votes for 29 municipal corporations across Maharashtra, including the high-stakes Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), began at 10 AM on Friday.

Officials are conducting the process at designated centres in Mumbai, Pune, Thane, and other major cities under tight security. They expect early postal ballot trends and the first rounds of EVM counting to emerge between 11:30 AM and 12:30 PM.

Due to phased counting and the large number of candidates – over 1,700 in Mumbai alone – authorities may declare final results for several wards only by evening.

The State Election Commission (SEC) reported strong voter participation. This turnout indicates either a desire for change or a highly polarised electorate.

The BMC recorded 52.94 per cent turnout, with Bhandup reaching 64.53 per cent and Colaba at 20.88 per cent. Pune saw 54 per cent, Pimpri-Chinchwad 58 per cent, and Kolhapur 70 per cent.

Officials scheduled elections for 2,869 seats but held voting for 2,801 seats after 68 candidates won unopposed. In total, 3.48 crore voters determined the fate of 15,931 candidates, including 1,729 in Mumbai.

Counting started amid controversy. Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and MNS president Raj Thackeray alleged that officials used indelible marker pens instead of traditional ink. They claimed the marks could be erased to facilitate bogus votes.

The SEC denied these allegations. It stated the ink takes time to dry and announced a probe into the matter.

The elections cover several major cities across Maharashtra. These include Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Navi Mumbai, Vasai-Virar, Kalyan-Dombivli, Kolhapur, Nagpur, Solapur, Amravati, Akola, Nashik, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Pune, Ulhasnagar, and Thane.

Other cities in the poll list are Chandrapur, Parbhani, Mira-Bhayandar, Nanded-Waghala, Panvel, Bhiwandi-Nizampur, Latur, Malegaon, Sangli-Miraj-Kupwad, Jalgaon, Ahilyanagar, Dhule, Jalna, and Ichalkaranji.

For the BJP-led Mahayuti, victories in BMC and other corporations are vital to establishing a triple-engine rule. Meanwhile, the Thackeray brothers face a major challenge in maintaining their political unity.

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