MUMBAI: The Nationalist Congress Party, which lost power in Maharashtra last month, wants to strengthen itself in such a way in Mumbai that it is able to field candidates in all the 236 wards of the city civic body in the upcoming polls, its state president Jayant Patil said on Wednesday.
Addressing a meeting of the party's Mumbai unit, NCP president Sharad Pawar gave a call to strengthen the organization in the metropolis, where it has only some pockets of influence, in view of the civic polls.
Elections to the 236-member Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporaiton (BMC) are scheduled later this year.
The party resolved to strengthen itself in such a way that it is able to find candidates to contest polls in all the civic wards, said Patil at the meeting.
The NCP, which was part of the erstwhile Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, has been working hard to expand its base in the country's financial capital over the last few years, the former state minister said.
"Mumbai is also politically important. We need to communicate with the citizens on a regular basis, especially using social media, and put forward our party's agenda," said Patil.
The NCP largely draws its support from western Maharashtra.
The Shiv Sena, an ally of the NCP, and the BJP are dominant political forces in the metropolis.
(THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS)