Mumbai Braces for BMC Polls: Police Boost Security with Barricades and Intensive Checks

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In a bid to ensure a smooth and secure voting process, the Mumbai Police has stepped up security measures ahead of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls. Starting from Thursday, the city will witness intense security checks and barricades at various locations, in an effort to prevent any untoward incidents. The voting, scheduled to take place from 7:30 am to 5:30 pm, will see over 1.03 crore eligible voters casting their ballots in 227 wards. The polls are seen as a crucial test for the Thackeray brothers, Uddhav and Raj, who are fighting to regain their lost prestige in the city and the state. The Shiv Sena, which was a dominant force in the BMC, has split since 2022, making the polls a significant challenge for the party. To ensure that voters, particularly senior citizens and women, have a smooth experience, the South Mumbai Returning Officer, Krishna Jadhav, has made special arrangements. A team will be available to assist senior citizens, while 'pink booths' have been created for women voters, where all the staff will be female and dressed in pink sarees. The BMC polls are part of a larger civic poll exercise across 29 municipal corporations in Maharashtra, with the stakes high for the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance, which won a resounding victory in the assembly elections last year. The voting will take place on January 15, with the results to be declared on January 16.