From political showdowns to civic challenges: A deep dive into the crucial constituency’s electoral landscape and concerns
Mulund residents protesting against the PAP project
The Mumbai North East constituency comprises six Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly) segments, including Mulund, Vikhroli, Bhandup West, Ghatkopar West, Ghatkopar East, and Mankhurd (Shivaji Nagar). It will witness a showdown between BJP’s sitting MLA Mihir Kotecha and Shiv Sena (UBT)’s former MP Sanjay Dina Patil. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has chosen to conduct a roadshow in this constituency for its closeness with Thane and MMR.
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Key issues in a nutshell
The key issues here are the two big dumping grounds in the constituency where garbage from the entire city is dumped affecting all residents’ health and welfare. The area also lacks multi-speciality hospitals and state-of-the-art healthcare facilities. Relocating dumping grounds, addressing the pollution and sanitation problems, and the fiery issue of shifting project-affected people (PAPs) from various parts of the city, including Dharavi, to Mulund East are the prime issues here. Also, the salt land is opening up and besides the Metro rail car shed coming up at Kanjurmarg, more PAPs are likely to be shifted here. The area spanning Bhandup, Vikhroli, and Kanjurmarg was an industrial belt. It has rapidly changed into a residential area with huge towers, complexes, and colonies coming up, but with limited civic infra leading to problems of drainage and water.
Constituency profile
The constituency has nearly 46 per cent Marathi population and also consists of Muslim-populated Mankhurd-Govandi, Gujarati-Marwari dominated Ghatkopar, Marathi-speaking voters in Vikhroli, Kanjurmarg, and Bhandup and a mixed population in Mulund. While the Uddhav Sena has been raking up the issue of Marathi vs Gujarati focused on removing dumping ground and PAPs saying no work done by sitting MP, the BJP MP has in his manifesto said he will work for development, promising a Mulund terminus, removal of dumping ground, and PAPs.
Past election results
In the Lok Sabha 2019 elections, Manoj Kotak of the BJP party who won, polled 5,14,599 votes and the runner-up was Patil Sanjay Dina of the NCP party. The margin of victory was 2,88,113 votes. In 2009, the BJP said Dina Patil had won as he had received support from the MNS, but this time, the MNS is with the BJP.
Mulund
Chetan Bordawekar, Mulund resident
Residents of Mulund East have been fighting for the scrapping of the PAPs project. A project to shift all PAPs, including those from Dharavi, is in process. Residents of Mulund West have been asking for better traffic conditions and expediting Metro work, which has led to narrowing down roads.
Vikhroli
Vikhroli residents have been suffering due to the issue of the dumping ground which was located from Mulund to Kanjurmarg. It leaves a stench in the locality affecting normal life. Also, the Vikhroli-Kanjurmarg belt has remained underdeveloped and needs better infrastructure and upgrades at par with the growing residential towers here.
Bhandup West
Originally an industrial belt, now being bombarded with residential towers, the basic infrastructure here is skewed. It leads to problems of traffic and congestion on the streets.
Ghatkopar West
The narrow LBS road and incomplete works of the Metro add to the problems here. The key issue of upgrading the existing railway station of Ghatkopar, which is extremely crowded due to the integration of the Metro, has been a point of discussion among commuters. Also, the issue of improved connectivity is the need of the hour.
Ghatkopar East
Scores of building redevelopment issues are being faced by residents here in areas like Pant Nagar and areas like Ramabai Nagar which are looking for cluster development. Seamless movement of highway traffic and other infra issues also need attention.
Mankhurd (Shivaji Nagar)
The issue here again is the dumping ground, leading to health risks to the residents here. The issues of sanitation and pollution are other key factors which have been affecting residents here. The effects of the dumping ground have affected the lifespan of residents here with many of them affected due to improper living conditions.
Voices
Mario Jose Rodrigues, Vikhroli resident, vice chairman of Vikhroli unit of the Bombay Catholic Sabha
Nauseating stench from Kanjurmarg dumping ground. Stench prevails from Vikhroli to Nahur on the eastern side. There is need to stop this daily nuisance which has led to health hazard and public nuisance
Dhanashree Sanjay Prabhu, Mulund resident
The government plans to add 40,000 to 50,000 people to Mulund. The population of Mulund east is around 150,000. Plus, these PAP indulge in illegal activities. It will be really unsafe for myself and my 11-year-old daughter. I want to run away from my city. All these PAP will be there with our children in schools, gardens, and tuition classes, which can affect their cultural, social, and educational life. In the evening, there is a huge traffic jam near the highways. This distance is barely 5 minutes, but it takes more than 45 minutes to enter the Mulund platform. Markets, hotels, and roads will explode in the future due to population. The current MP has cheated us by bringing the PAP here.
Community-wise voters
Marathi 46%
Gujarati Marwari 12.15%
North Indian 14.49%
Christian 1.42%
Muslim 17.60%
South Indian 4.7%
Other 3.44%
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