BMC polls: 2 Borivli-Dahisar candidates promise redevelopment, better infrastructure | Mumbai News

Mumbai: At the Bhablipada chawl in Dahisar East, a bunch of sari-clad women with saffron scarves made the rounds of narrow bylanes on Tuesday evening. In the centre of the group was former corporator Tejasvee Ghosalkar, who recently moved from Shiv Sena (UBT) to the BJP and is contesting the municipal election from Ward 2 (comprising parts of Borivli and Dahisar). As door curtains slid and residents peeked out of their homes, Ghosalkar folded her hands to the chants of ‘”kamal hamara lucky hai, jeet hamari pakki hai'” from her supporters.For Bhablipada, stalled redevelopment has been a key issue, due to building height restrictions imposed by high-frequency radar installations operated by Airport Authorities of India. “Kai builder aaye aur gaye… hum intezaar kar rahe hai,” said an elderly resident. Last month, the state govt decided to relocate the radar stations which will unlock acres for affordable housing and redevelopment projects. Ghosalkar, 38, promised to permanently resolve radar-related issues if elected.“People know the work I did as a corporator in Ward Number 1 in the past,” Ghosalkar said. “My late husband, former corporator Abhishek Ghosalkar, and I had a close connect with the Catholic community in Ward Number 1 and I will have a similar connect with Maharashtrian and Gujarati communities in Ward Number 2. Marathi voters are happy to know that the BJP has fielded a Marathi candidate here,” she added.As Ghosalkar continued her campaign in housing societies off New Link Road, she was hugged by an elderly woman. “I have always received love and support from you all. Ensure the next mayor comes from BJP,” she said on a mic, as party workers led by former BJP corporator Jagdish Ojha, waved flags and shouted slogans in her support.Less than a kilometre away, Sena UBT’s candidate for Ward 2, Dhanashree Kolge, was going door-to-door at Dahisar’s Anand Nagar and Sambhaji Nagar, urging residents to vote for the party. A Yuva Sena member, this would be 34-year-old Kolge’s first time contesting an election.“I have worked for 12 years on the ground with Yuva Sena and being a local resident, I understand civic issues faced here better than anyone else,” Kolge, a graduate in home science and nutrition, said. At Jay Gokul society in Anand Nagar, residents pointed to choked gutters, bad roads and water-logging. Kolge suggested solutions like underground water holding tanks— which UBT leader Aditya Thackeray conceptualised in Hindmata—could be replicated in low-lying areas of Dahisar.Youngsters, including Yuva Sena members, friends and family, were a prominent part of her campaign. “We are confident of a good lead for UBT,” a Yuva Sena member said. Besides Ghosalkar and Kolge, Congress’s Menaka Singh and Independent Sunita Bhatia will contest from the ward.