Shiv Sena (UBT) delivers a historic upset in Parbhani Municipal Corporation elections, defying Maharashtra’s Mahayuti sweep. The victory marks Uddhav Thackeray’s first direct civic control in Parbhani after 19 years.
While the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance delivered a sweeping performance across multiple municipal corporations in Maharashtra, the results from Parbhani have emerged as a striking political outlier. Located in the underdeveloped Marathwada region, Parbhani has bucked the statewide trend by handing a historic victory to the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), dealing a significant blow to the ruling coalition’s momentum.
Amid a political wave favouring the BJP, Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, and Ajit Pawar’s NCP, Uddhav Thackeray’s faction demonstrated unexpected resilience and organisational strength by securing control of the Parbhani Municipal Corporation (PMC). This marks the first time that Shiv Sena (UBT) will directly govern the civic body, ending nearly two decades of political dominance by the Nationalist Congress Party and the Congress.
In a fiercely contested election, Shiv Sena (UBT) emerged as the single largest party by winning 25 seats. The Congress followed with 12 seats, while the BJP also secured 12. Ajit Pawar’s NCP managed 11 seats, Jan Surajya Party won 3, Yashwant Sena claimed 1, and one seat went to an independent candidate. With support from Congress and smaller parties, Shiv Sena (UBT) is now expected to stake a strong claim to the Mayor’s post.
The victory is particularly significant given Parbhani’s political history. The last time the Shiv Sena held the mayoral position in the region was in 2007, when Parbhani functioned as a Municipal Council. After its elevation to a Municipal Corporation in 2011, power largely remained with the NCP and later the Congress. The latest outcome marks the return of the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena to the city after a gap of 19 years.
Political observers credit the win to the cohesive and ground-focused leadership of Parbhani MP Sanjay Jadhav and local MLA Rahul Patil. Unlike the Mahayuti alliance, which relied heavily on state-level leadership and high-profile campaigners, the Shiv Sena (UBT) strategy revolved around local credibility, organisational unity, and direct voter outreach.
The BJP deployed its top leadership extensively in Parbhani, with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, State BJP President Ravindra Chavan, and senior minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule addressing more than 200 rallies and meetings. Despite the intense campaigning, the alliance failed to convert visibility into votes, highlighting the limitations of centralized political messaging in a region with strong local identities.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) contested 48 seats and tactically adopted a “friendly fight” approach with the Congress in several wards. This coordination ensured that anti-Mahayuti votes were not split, a factor widely seen as decisive in preventing the ruling alliance from gaining a numerical edge.
In contrast, the Mahayuti partners—BJP, Shinde’s Shiv Sena, and Ajit Pawar’s NCP—were unable to replicate their statewide success in Parbhani. Despite high-decibel campaigns by Guardian Minister Meghna Bordikar and Industries Minister Uday Samant, the alliance failed to collectively cross the 25-seat threshold.
Reacting to the setback, BJP leader Meghna Bordikar acknowledged the defeat, stating that while Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s leadership had delivered results elsewhere in the state, the alliance fell short in Parbhani. She emphasized the need for internal review and deeper analysis to understand the reasons behind the loss.
Analysts believe that Parbhani’s electorate responded strongly to a sense of regional pride and personal connection. MP Sanjay Jadhav’s longstanding grassroots presence, combined with local dissatisfaction toward externally driven campaigns, allowed the Shiv Sena (UBT) to consolidate support across communities.
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For Uddhav Thackeray, the Parbhani victory carries immense symbolic and psychological value. At a time when his faction has been under pressure from defections and electoral setbacks, the result demonstrates that the Shiv Sena (UBT) remains capable of defeating the combined strength of the BJP-Shinde-Ajit Pawar alliance in strategically important regional pockets.
As Maharashtra’s political landscape continues to evolve, Parbhani stands out as a reminder that local leadership, strategic alliances, and voter sentiment can still disrupt even the strongest electoral waves.
