Mumbai set to have woman mayor as ‘general woman’ category picked in lottery

Mumbai is set to get a woman mayor after the ‘general woman’ category was selected in a lottery draw held by the Maharashtra government on Thursday, days after the conclusion of the state’s civic polls.

The Urban Development Department conducted the draw to determine the reservation category for mayoral posts across municipal corporations in Maharashtra for the upcoming term. The outcome confirmed that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will be led by a woman from the general category.

The lottery system is used to decide whether the mayoral post in each civic body will be reserved for general candidates, women or members of backward classes. Following Thursday’s draw, eligible candidates in the BMC will now be able to file their nominations for the post.

The election of the mayor will take place in a special meeting of the municipal corporation, where elected corporators will vote. The candidate securing a simple majority, more than half of the total strength of the house, will be elected mayor.

However, the process has sparked political controversy. The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) boycotted the lottery, alleging irregularities in how the reservation was decided.

The party questioned why the BMC mayoral post was once again allotted to the general category, arguing that rotation norms should have shifted the seat to an Other Backward Class or another reserved category.

Former Mumbai mayor and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Kishori Pednekar claimed that the rules governing the lottery had been altered without transparency. “We condemn the way the procedure was conducted,” she said, alleging that changes were made without informing stakeholders.

According to the lottery results, several other major municipal corporations in Maharashtra, including Pune, Dhule, Nanded, Navi Mumbai, Malegaon, Mira Bhayandar, Nashik and Nagpur, will also have mayoral posts reserved for women.

The announcement paves the way for a significant rise in women’s representation in civic leadership across the state, even as opposition parties continue to question the fairness of the reservation process.

With agency inputs