CM will be Cong mascot in BMC polls

MUMBAI: Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh’s detractors may be projecting him as the Congress’s albatross, but he will be the party’s mascot for the BMC elections early next year.

The party wants to corner the Shiv Sena-BJP combine by holding the BMC’s failure against the performance of the MMRDA, which is headed by the CM.

“The BMC’s remit covers 83 per cent of civic initiatives - including roads and drinking water,” said Sanjay Nirupam, state Congress spokesman. “The MMRDA has control over only 17 per cent of the city projects. Yet it has shown its mettle.”

Sonia Gandhi’s Mumbai rally on December 23 is meant to motivate the ranks. A circular issued by the Mumbai Regional Congress Committee states that every campaign poster should feature Deshmukh.