Chaitanya.MarpakwarMumbai: With the city seeing two monsoon-related negligence deaths in two days, the governing BJP and Shiv Sena in the BMC passed the buck and put the blame entirely on the BMC administration led by civic chief Ashwini Bhide for the tragic incidents despite “pre-monsoon inspection tourism.” The two parties had been vying for credit for pre-monsoon works before the rains.Political observers said Bhide, who took over the reins in April, had claimed monsoon preparedness would be her key challenge, but the two incidents show she has failed to get a grip on the administration despite several site visits and review meets.The opposition said Shiv Sena and BJP have misplaced priorities and were busy chasing alleged Bangladeshi nationals, for which several meetings were held by mayor Ritu Tawde, who blamed the administration for the Chembur tree crash as well as the manhole death. SP MLA Rais Shaikh said that after holding dozens of pre- monsoon inspection visits and meetings on alleged fake birth certificates, BJP-Sena’s misplaced priorities have been exposed. “The misplaced priorities are responsible for monsoon-related deaths. The mayor should apologise to Mumbaikars for failure to focus on civic infrastructure and assure them that BMC will now focus on its core responsibilities,” Shaikh said.With BMC under BJP control and Eknath Shinde’s Sena having no real power in BMC, Sena was the first to put blame on Bhide and the administration. Deputy mayor Sanjay Ghadi of Sena sought her resignation on Thursday, saying after the Sakinaka incident, “There should have been comprehensive inspection to ensure all manholes were fitted with protective grills before monsoon. If necessary, BMC should have floated a dedicated tender for this work. If public safety demanded it, such an exercise should have been undertaken even without waiting for the tender process,” Ghadi said. “This incident reflects a serious lapse in planning and execution. Bhide must take responsibility,” he said.Sena MP Milind Deora said on X, “How many more Mumbaikars must die before basic civic safety becomes a priority? Open manholes are not “accidents”, they are the result of negligence, failed systems & a lack of accountability.”Despite having four additional commissioners and Bhide, which is a total of five IAS officers, BMC has failed to keep the city safe in the first week of monsoon, a senior bureaucrat said.Soon after taking over as municipal commissioner, Bhide had claimed her primary hurdles involved time-bound execution of critical infrastructure works, pre-monsoon readiness, and longstanding civic issues.
