Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], January 15 : Shiv Sena candidate Priya Sarvankar hit out at the opposition, stating that they are advancing a "Bhai-Bhai agenda" in the Maharashtra local body polls.
Underscoring the Mahayuti Alliance's "developmental agenda," she said that the people will vote for them.
"Shiv Sena and BJP are moving forward with a development agenda, while opposition parties are advancing a 'Bhai-Bhai' agenda (brother-brother alliance). All Mumbaikars will vote for our development agenda...," she said.
The last Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections were held in February 2017. Sarvankar highlighted the significance of these polls being conducted after 8 years.
"The benefit of these civic polls is seen directly in the homes of the common public. There are several issues which are very important for the middle-class, such as water, cleanliness, etc. Hence, these elections hold significance, especially since they are being conducted after 8 years," she added.
She further expressed confidence in the victory of the Mahayuti alliance in the elections, saying, "The mayor will definitely be from our alliance."
Priya Sarvankar is contesting the election from Ward No. 191 (G-North) on a Shiv Sena ticket.
The polling for India's richest municipal corporation, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), began on Thursday early morning, with hundreds of voters queueing up to exercise their franchise and elect 277 new ward members, after a gap of nearly 8 years.
Voting began at 7:30 am today, with people queuing at their respective polling booths. A total of 1,700 candidates are set to contest the polls in Mumbai.
The Thackeray family, including former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and his son Aaditya Thackeray, also visited polling booth 44 at Kala Nagar, Sahvas Society, in Bandra East to cast their votes.
A total of 1,03,44,315 citizens are eligible to vote in the BMC polls. Of these, 55,16,707 are men, 48,26,509 are women, and the number of other voters is 1,099.
The State Election Commission (SEC) has strictly enforced the Model Code of Conduct (MCC), with thousands of personnel deployed for monitoring.
Apart from Mumbai, Municipal elections for over 28 other corporations are being held across Maharashtra, with counting of votes scheduled for Friday, January 16.