Ulhasnagar: Shiv Sena and BJP, the two Mahayuti partners, are also allies in Ulhasnagar Municipal Corporation (UMC). However, their differences over the appointment of nominated corporators escalated from Bombay High Court to Supreme Court .
Vadhrya said the distribution should have been four posts for BJP and three for Shiv Sena. We will approach the court against the mayor over the violation,” he said. Defending Thursday’s decision, Mayor Nikam said she had complied with Supreme Court’s directions. She said Shiv Sena had submitted three nominees, while two posts were given to social workers. We will challenge her decision in court,” he said.
The decision immediately drew objections from BJP, with group leader Rajesh Vadhrya terming the process illegal and saying the party would challenge the mayor’s decision in court. “Four BJP candidates were proposed, but the mayor declared only two names, while five candidates from Shiv Sena were declared. This is a violation of the prescribed legal procedure. Vadhrya, however, alleged that the mayor had misused her powers. “In place of our two invalid candidates, we had submitted the names of two other candidates, including an advocate and a doctor, whose names had been found valid by the commissioner. But the mayor misused her powers.
After Supreme Court’s directions, UMC completed the process of appointing seven nominated corporators on Thursday, but the exercise once again exposed their differences, with BJP now indicating that the matter could return to court.
On Sept 11, Bombay High Court, while hearing a petition filed by BJP district president and UMC group leader Rajesh Vadhrya, directed the civic body to complete the nomination process by Sept 25. The dispute dates back to last month when two Shiv Sena corporators facing disqualification proceedings informed the mayor that they had challenged their disqualification before Bombay High Court. They sought deferment of the nomination process, arguing that their disqualification had reduced Shiv Sena’s effective strength for the purpose of nominated corporators from four to three.