Maharashtra Elections 2024: Bandra West faces Shelar vs. Zakaria in high-stakes contest

Bandra West MLA and BJP candidate Ashish Shelar. Pic/Satej Shinde; (right) Congress candidate Asif Zakaria from Bandra West constituency. Pic/Kirti Surve Parade

Home to upscale neighbourhoods, centuries-old villages and dingy slums, the Bandra West Assembly constituency faces water, sanitation and redevelopment-related issues. Congested narrow roads and parking are also major concerns while plush societies' residents are struggling to keep hawkers at bay and pollution in check.

Mumbai BJP President Ashish Shelar is contesting the seat for the fourth time. After losing in 2009 by a low margin, the senior leader managed to retain the constituency for the past 10 years, despite Muslims - which comprise a large portion of the electorate - being considered Congress voters. In 2014, the late Baba Siddique, the Congress candidate, received 47,868 votes against the BJP's 74,779. In 2019, when Asif Zakaria was fielded on a Congress ticket, the number of votes remained almost the same.

Zakaria told mid-day, "In 2014, the combined vote share of Shiv Sena, MNS and NCP candidates was around 20,000 and in 2019, despite the undivided Sena and BJP being together, the vote difference between Congress and BJP didn't change. This time, there isn't an MNS candidate, and Sena (UBT) and NCP-SP are with us. Also, during the Lok Sabha election, the vote difference between the two parties was hardly 3,500 votes, which can be surpassed this time as people have a strong option in the I.N.D.I.A bloc."

Shelar, however, feels the constituency is with him. "In the past, when we fought against three parties [Congress, Shiv Sena and MNS] or in an alliance, the result was the same - we won. So there isn't any worry this time as people will vote for development and Ashish Shelar," he said.
Though the roads here are in better condition than most parts of the city, narrow lanes and footpath markets leave no space for pedestrians to walk or cars to ply. The hawker menace, lack of open spaces, pollution, erratic water supply and redevelopment in gaothans and slum pockets are other major issues.

"We are looking for a hawking policy at the state level to ensure the acute issue we face on Bandra's roads can be resolved permanently so that footpaths will be available for walking, not hawking," said Lillian Pais, a resident.

Ashish Shelar, BJP candidate

Bandra West MLA and BJP candidate Ashish Shelar. Pics/Satej Shinde

A third of the water in the city is wasted in leakages. How do you hope to tackle this issue?
It is a crime to waste so much water. Despite being in power in the corporation for 25 years, they [Thackerays] cannot even plug leakages. Uddhav-ji promised to supply water to H West ward 24x7. But even during festival time, in certain areas here, there is no water pressure. Now I have studied the plan for the tertiary level wastewater treatment plan which will come up within a year or two near the Bandra Worli Sea Link and potable water will be supplied to commercial establishments so that there is enough water for residents from BMC.

What about the promise of pothole-free roads within two years?
CM Eknath Shinde announced pothole-free roads in 2022 and within one and a half years, work across the city is already under process. You have to give him time. The CM has changed the budget, format and conditions of the tenders so that more and more contractors come forward.

Last-mile connectivity is still a distant dream in Mumbai. How is your government going to solve it?
Devendra Fadnavis had started Metro projects during his earlier tenure. During the Congress period, only half of the Metro line was completed. When Thackeray was in the government, instead of making any alternative for the railway, he stopped the Metro work. But now out of nine lines, three are completed and two are on the verge of completion. The Thackeray government is responsible for the mismanagement of the BEST. For last-mile connectivity, railway, Metro and bus services - and also sometimes autos and taxis - should be integrated. The BJP is working on an integrated solution.

Due to large-scale infrastructure projects, air pollution has increased. What will you do about this?
Once again, the Thackerays are responsible as in 2020- 2021 they had given blanket permission to buildings charging only half the premium on the pretext of increasing the BMC's income. Builders who took permission during that period to save money have now started construction after getting other permissions in one go. Because of the subsidy, the construction rate increased two-fold. It also created air pollution issues. Though we will not stop construction, there will be strict vigilance to curb the pollution.

Bandra witnessed SRA projects as a solution for the redevelopment of slums. With allegations of corruption being levelled against the scheme, do you think it is a solution?
In urban areas, SRA projects can bring the desired change. Yes, there is corruption. But it needs to be dealt with separately rather than scrapping the entire scheme.

Are there any plans for job creation?
The job creation scenario has changed. There are many opportunities in new professions like event management and new platforms to offer various services in the food and travel industries. But you need an ecosystem that can support these industries and the government has to work on it.

Residents allege you have lost touch when it comes to issues like the Patwardhan Park matter and renovation of Bandra fort. It took almost one and half years to resolve the park issue.
But who solved the issue? I had written to the BMC to scrap the parking project after which the corporation scrapped it. The fort renovation issue will be taken care of. I have done many infrastructure projects in Bandra.

Asif Zakaria, Congress

Congress candidate Asif Zakaria from Bandra West Assembly constituency. Pic/Kirit Surve Parade

Redevelopment is a major issue in gaothans and slum pockets.
There are many gaothans. They are not slums, so slum rehabilitation should not be implemented here. Despite repeated assurances that there will be special schemes for them in Development Plans, nothing has been implemented on the ground. Now the state has announced some schemes and may hand over these gaothan - where original inhabitants of Mumbai stay - to Ambani and Adani to redevelop.

On the other hand, SRA [Slum Rehabilitation Authority] projects have been stuck for years and there is massive corruption. Unless it is resolved, the scheme is of no use.

Erratic water supply is another major concern.
Many areas, including Khar Danda, regularly face inadequate water supply. The BMC was planning to supply water 24 hours a day but failed to bring about a basic water supply with adequate pressure. In addition to this, gaothans and slums are still waiting for basic infrastructure. There should be a holistic plan with a vision to solve these issues.

Pollution is another concern across the city. What is your plan of action on this?
Bandra residents have been constantly suffering from dust from ongoing infrastructure projects. Air and sound pollution must be dealt with at the source. There are rules in place but implementation is pathetic. We have an air pollution mitigation policy, but who is following it? There is no proper method to inspect and keep vigilance. There should be basic rules concerning barricading the structure and using sprinklers but ruling parties are just concentrating on ‘construction' and forget pollution mitigation plans.

What is your roadmap for the next five years if you win?
I will do it by collaborating with all ALMs. Connectivity with residents is important. A people's representative should act for the betterment of society by considering citizens' views and should not make decisions in isolation. People feel that the present MLA has lost connection with the people. Announcing big-ticket projects without consulting the public is a major issue. Parking projects at Patwardhan Park, Bandra Fort, garden renovation, and leasing public land to private parties are a few recent examples.

Do you think the Ladki Bahin scheme will have an impact on this election?
We are not against the scheme. But what is the use if the government is giving with one hand and taking back with both? People know better. Inflation is on the rise. Stamp paper, oil and fuel costs have increased almost five to tenfold.

What about the issue of job creation?
We need to understand that not only slums but even residents of high-rises need jobs. There should be a policy to create more jobs
through industries. But the current government is interested in shifting industries to Gujarat. The government does not work to invite industries in Maharashtra or Mumbai and that's why we are facing a crunch in job creation.

48,309
Voters garnered by Asif Zakaria in 2019