Colaba To Witness High Profile Battle Between BJP's Rahul Narwekar And Congress' Heera Devasi
The Colaba assembly constituency is bracing a high-profile direct battle between Congress and the BJP in the upcoming assembly elections. Since 2014, the constituency has been represented by the BJP. Rahul Narwekar, who is currently serving as the speaker of the state assembly, won the 2019 assembly elections by a margin of 16,195 votes.
In 2014, BJP leader Raj K. Purohit captured Colaba from the Congress hold when the constituency was swayed by the national trend in the Modi wave.
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The BJP has renominated the sitting MLA against the Congress candidate Heera Devasi, who contested the recent Lok Sabha elections from the Malabar Hill constituency, but was defeated by the BJP MP Mangal Prabhat Lodha by a margin of over 70,000 votes.
Though there were initially certain discords, the MVA finally confirmed its candidate for the high-profile seat of Colaba. Notably, the Mahayuti has alleged that the opposition could not find a suitable candidate for the constituency.
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The constituency with a diverse population consists of affluent, high-class residents, including some of India’s richest people. It also involves some of the known slums, such as Ambedkar Nagar, Geeta Nagar, and Anushakti Nagar. Institutions such as Bombay High Court, Mantralaya, Vidhan Bhavan, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, and the Mumbai Police headquarters also come under the Colaba constituency.
However, while the BJP candidate is banking on his performance as an MLA and speaker, the Congress candidate has been campaigning, promising change and development. Narwekar has been seeking re-election, promising the state capital region status for Colaba. However, there are issues such as the water scarcity and dilapidated buildings, among others, in the region.
