BJP Ditches Shiv Sena In Ambernath Civic Body, Joins Hands With Congress In Rare Alliance

In a surprising political twist, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress have joined forces in the Ambernath Municipal Council, Thane, to wrest control from Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena faction. The unexpected collaboration has sent shockwaves across Maharashtra’s political landscape.

Following last month’s municipal elections, where Shiv Sena and BJP contested separately despite their alliance at the state and national levels, the two national rivals decided to join hands locally. Along with councillors from Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) faction, they formed the Ambernath Vikas Aghadi, securing a majority and effectively taking charge of the council in the Mumbai metropolitan region.

The coalition enabled BJP’s Tejashree Karanjule to assume the mayoral post, with the alliance commanding a 32-member majority — 16 from BJP, 12 from Congress, and four from NCP. BJP corporator Abhijit Karanjule Patil has been named the alliance’s group leader, cementing its control over council decisions.