After the switch, a mixed bag for rebel candidates

The tough fight for BMC saw several rebel candidates leaving their respective political parties to retain their position as corporator or to pursue their ambition of becoming one. Many rebels joined the BJP, while some joined Shiv Sena and still others who leaned towards the Congress and AIMIM. In terms of results for candidates who had switched from Shiv Sena to BJP and vice-versa, it was a mixed bag, with some emerging victorious and others facing a disappointing defeat. Some of the known rebel candidates were Mangal Bhanushali from BJP who joined the Sena, and Riddhi Khursunge from NCP who also joined the Shiv Sena.

Bhanushali, chief of the Gujarati community of the city's BJP unit tried his luck from ward 131 of Shastri Nagar, Ghatkopar east with the confidence of winning Gujarati votes. However, he lost the seat to NCP's Rakhi Jadhav, a sitting corporator in the same area. Nana Ambole, a famous face of the Sena joined BJP for a ticket along with his wife Tejasvini Ambole. He contested from ward 203 — the Lalbaug-Parel belt — in the hopes of garnering votes from the Marathi-speaking voters, but lost to Shiv Sena's Sindhu Masulkar. Waqarussina Ansari, a Congress corporator, rebelled against the party to join AIMIM. Ansari, who thought she enjoyed support of Muslim voters of ward number 223 lost to Dyanraj Nikam's daughter Nikita Nikam from Congress.

Big names

Some of the known rebel candidates were Mangal Bhanushali from the BJP who joined the Shiv Sena, and Riddhi Khursunge from NCP who also joined Sena.