Party offices in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which have remained closed for the last three years, are set to reopen soon. However, this time the situation is more complex. With the Shiv Sena split into two factions and the election of eight corporators from the AIMIM, the number of political parties represented in the Mumbai Municipal Corporation has increased. As a result, if these political groups formally demand party offices, the civic administration will be required to allot them. The BMC administration will now have to prepare accordingly.
Even after the BMC’s term ended in March 2022, party offices in the municipal headquarters were kept open for some time following demands from former corporators. However, after the split in the Shiv Sena in June 2022, a major dispute erupted between the two factions in December 2022, leading to clashes between party workers within the party office premises. Following this incident, the municipal administration shut down all party offices in December 2022.
At the time, then Guardian Minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha demanded that a Guardian Minister’s office be opened in the BMC headquarters. As a result, former BJP corporators were allotted offices, while the offices of all other political parties remained closed. Meanwhile, the municipal administration has temporarily opened an election office in the Shiv Sena party office.
Elected corporators require party offices to study documents, conduct official correspondence, and hold pre-meeting discussions. The BMC administration allocates small or large halls to political parties based on the number of corporators they have. Since the Shiv Sena had been in power in the BMC for the last 25 to 30 years, it traditionally had the highest number of corporators and was therefore allotted the largest party office.
In the 2017 municipal elections, the BJP’s strength rose to 82 corporators. Following the renovation of the municipal headquarters, the BJP was also allotted a larger office. In the current election, the BJP’s strength has increased further to 89 corporators, which means it will again be entitled to a larger hall.
Meanwhile, as the Shiv Sena has split into two factions, two separate halls will need to be allotted to the party this time. If parties such as the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and the AIMIM also demand party offices, they too will have to be provided space. This issue is currently under review by the municipal administration.
Even Two Corporators Are Entitled to an OfficeUnder the provisions of the Municipal Act, a political group with at least two corporators is eligible for a party office if it makes a formal demand. However, such groups must first register themselves with the Konkan Divisional Commissioner. The Samajwadi Party, which has two corporators, and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), with three corporators, are therefore also likely to be allotted party offices.
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