BMC 2026: How Family-First Candidates are Shaking Up Politics

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections are witnessing a strong rise in family-first politics, with at least 43 leaders securing tickets for their relatives across major parties.

The election battleground of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has this time witnessed the sharp rise of what many are calling family first politics. With the nomination process for the BMC elections scheduled for January 15 now closed, it has become clear that at least 43 leaders have secured tickets for their family members, raising fresh questions about the growing influence of political dynasties in civic politics.

Political dynasties and the BMC ticket count
In Mumbai, the distribution of tickets based on family ties has reached a notable scale in this election. At least 43 leaders have ensured nominations for close relatives, including children, spouses, brothers, sisters and extended family members.

Among the prominent names are BJP MLA Rahul Narvekar, who secured 3 tickets for his family, Congress MLA Aslam Shaikh, who also secured 3 tickets, and former NCP MLA Nawab Malik, who figures in the same category.

In many cases, leaders used their influence and established vote banks to secure tickets for family members, often overriding considerations of experience or seniority among party workers.

Who is fielding which relatives
Shiv Sena Shinde faction

Deepti Waikar, daughter of MP Ravindra Waikar, is contesting from Ward 73 in Andheri East. Ravindra Waikar has previously served 4 terms as a BMC corporator, later became an MLA and is now a Member of Parliament.

• MLA Dilip Lande has secured a ticket for his wife Shaila Lande from Ward 163.
• Bhandup MLA Ashok Patil’s son Rupesh Patil is contesting from Ward 113.
• Senior leader and MLA Sada Sarvankar has secured tickets for his son Samadhan from Ward 194 and his daughter Priya from Ward 191.

BJP
Three tickets linked to Rahul Narvekar’s family include Makrand Narvekar, his brother, from Ward 226, Harshita Narvekar, his sister in law, from Ward 227, and Dr Gauravi Shiwalkar, his cousin, also from Ward 227.

Neel Somaiya, son of former MP Kirit Somaiya, has already won unopposed from Mulund Ward 107 after the opposition candidate’s nomination was rejected on technical grounds.

• BJP leader Pravin Darekar’s brother Prakash Darekar is contesting from Ward 3.
• The brother in law of BJP Mumbai president Amit Satam is contesting from Ward 68.

Congress
The Congress has also fielded several family members of senior leaders.

Aslam Shaikh, MLA from Malad, has secured tickets for his son Haider Shaikh from Ward 34, his sister Qamar Jahan Siddiqui from Ward 33, and his son in law Saif Ahmed Khan from Ward 62 in Andheri West.

• Former minister Arif Naseem Khan’s son Aamir Khan is contesting from Ward 162 in Kurla.
• Mohsin Haidar’s son Sufiyan Haidar is contesting from Ward 65, while his wife Meher Haidar is contesting from Ward 66.
• Former MP Chandrakant Handore’s daughter Pragyoti has been given a ticket from Ward 140.
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• Shiv Sena Uddhav Thackeray faction
  Sitting MLA Sanjay Dina Patil’s daughter Rajul is contesting from Ward 114.
• Former minister Sunil Prabhu’s son Ankit is contesting from Ward 54.
• MLA Manoj Jamsutkar’s wife Sonam has been given a ticket from Ward 210.

The BJP has long projected itself as a party opposed to dynastic politics, but this election has seen it dilute that stance in several cases. While tickets were cleared for relatives of leaders such as Rahul Narvekar, the party denied nominations to some others. Those denied tickets include the brother of minister Ashish Shelar, the daughter of MLA Manisha Chaudhary, the son of MLA Vidya Thakur, the son of MLC Rajhans Singh and the daughter of former MLC Vijay Girkar.

As the campaign gathers pace, the prominence of family based candidacies has emerged as one of the defining features of the BMC elections, prompting debate over merit, internal democracy and the future direction of urban local governance.