The BJP-led alliance won 118 of the 227 seats in the BMC, crossing the majority mark of 114 seats by a comfortable margin. This outcome marked a major political upset in what was long considered a Shiv Sena stronghold.
Representational Image
New Delhi: The election results of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the richest civic body in India, have not only reshaped Mumbai’s political landscape but also brought renewed attention to the enormous financial strength of municipal corporations.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena alliance registered a decisive victory, ending the Thackeray family’s nearly 25-year dominance over the BMC.
The BJP-led alliance won 118 of the 227 seats in the BMC, crossing the majority mark of 114 seats by a comfortable margin. This outcome marked a major political upset in what was long considered a Shiv Sena stronghold.
BJP Breaks Its Own Record
In a significant gain, the BJP improved upon its 2017 performance, when it had secured 82 seats. This time, the party won 89 wards. BJP candidates polled a total of 11,79,273 votes, accounting for 45.22 percent of the votes secured by winning candidates and 21.58 percent of the total votes cast.
The Shiv Sena (UBT), which had traditionally dominated the civic body, was reduced to 65 seats. Its winning candidates received 7,17,736 votes—27.52 percent of the votes among winners and 13.13 percent of the overall votes cast. Despite finishing second, Uddhav Thackeray’s party lost control of the BMC.
Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena won 29 wards. Notably, the pre-poll alliance between Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray failed to deliver electoral gains for either party.
Why the BMC Is India’s Richest Civic Body
On February 4, 2025, the BMC presented a record budget of Rs 74,427 crore for the financial year 2025–26—around 14 percent higher than the previous year. This is the largest municipal budget in the country and exceeds the annual budgets of several Indian states.
For comparison, Goa’s budget for 2025–26 stands at Rs 28,162 crore, Arunachal Pradesh’s at Rs 39,842 crore, Himachal Pradesh’s at Rs 58,514 crore, Sikkim’s at Rs 16,196 crore, and Tripura’s at Rs 31,412 crore. Unlike municipal bodies, these state governments are responsible for critical sectors such as health, education, policing, and welfare schemes.
India’s 10 Richest Municipal Corporations (By Budget Size)
Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (Mumbai) – Rs 74,427 crore (2025–26)
Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (Bengaluru) – Rs 19,930 crore (2025–26)
Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) – Rs 16,530 crore (2026–27)
Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation – Rs 15,502 crore (2025–26)
Pune Municipal Corporation – Rs 12,618 crore (2025–26)
Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation – Rs 11,460 crore (2026–27)
Surat Municipal Corporation – Over Rs 10,000 crore (2025–26)
Greater Chennai Corporation – Rs 8,404.7 crore (2025–26)
Kolkata Municipal Corporation – Rs 5,166.5 crore (2024–25)
Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation – Rs 4,762 crore (2025–26)
The figures underline the extraordinary financial clout of the BMC, which remains far ahead of other major civic bodies such as the MCD and KMC, reinforcing Mumbai’s status as the country’s most resource-rich urban local body.
