As campaigning for civic body elections across Maharashtra enters its final phase, maximum attention remains on the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the country’s richest municipal body. Despite an intense political atmosphere and heightened identity-based rhetoric, the overall representation of Muslim candidates in the BMC elections has remained broadly in line with previous trends.

A total of 334 Muslim candidates are contesting the BMC elections this year. This figure includes nominees from national and state-level political parties, smaller registered parties, as well as independents. Out of nearly 1,700 total candidates, Muslim contestants account for around 19 percent.

Among political parties, AIMIM has fielded the highest proportion of Muslim candidates. Of its 32 candidates, 25 belong to the Muslim community, amounting to nearly 78 percent. The Samajwadi Party follows closely, with 50 Muslim candidates out of 70, or about 71 percent. Ajit Pawar’s faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has allotted tickets to 23 Muslim candidates, constituting roughly 24 percent of its total candidates.

The Congress has also given significant representation, fielding 33 Muslim candidates out of 150 seats, around 21 percent. Both factions of the Shiv Sena have included Muslim candidates as well. The Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has nominated 10 Muslim candidates (about 10 percent), while the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction has given tickets to 8 Muslim candidates, accounting for nearly 5 percent of its total.

In contrast, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has not fielded a single Muslim candidate in the BMC elections. Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) is contesting 53 seats but has nominated only two Muslim candidates, about 4 percent.

Beyond major parties, 91 Muslim candidates are contesting as independents, while 45 candidates belong to smaller registered parties. Together, national and state-level parties account for 198 Muslim candidates.

Muslims form a significant portion of Mumbai’s electorate, comprising 25.6 percent of the population in the city and 19.19 percent in the suburbs. Of the 45 Muslim-dominated wards, Muslim voters play a decisive role in nearly 30 wards. This election has also seen a reduction in male Muslim candidates, partly due to the implementation of women’s reservation in several Muslim-majority wards.

Looking back at the 2017 BMC elections, a total of 360 Muslim candidates had contested, slightly higher than the current figure. That year, 31 Muslim candidates were elected, with Congress leading the tally, followed by the Samajwadi Party, the undivided NCP, AIMIM, Shiv Sena, and one independent candidate.