MUMBAI, Jan. 11 -- A citizen-led audit has flagged a widening gap, and in several cases, a complete reversal, between the 2017 civic manifesto promises of the Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party and the reality of governance in Mumbai over the past eight years. The audit, conducted by BMCelections.org, states that civic governance between 2017 and 2025 marked a fundamental shift in the functioning of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation- from a democratic, surplus-accumulating institution to a bureaucratic, deficit-financed body increasingly driven by capital-intensive infrastructure spending. According to the report, the defining feature of this shift has been a clear policy preference for large road and transport projects over investments in human capital. It argues that the true measure of a "world-class city" lies not in the speed of its expressways but in the dignity and security afforded to its most vulnerable residents. The audit highlights that budgetary allocations for mega road projects doubled from 8.0% in 2024-25 to 15.8% in 2025-26, driven by projects such as the Coastal Road and the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road. In contrast, spending on education fell sharply from 9.2% to 5.3% during the same period. Public health allocations, the report notes, failed to keep pace with rising urban needs. The consequences of this shift are already visible. Total enrolment in vernacular municipal schools declined by 26% between 2015 and 2024, forcing the closure or merger of 257 schools over the past decade. Meanwhile, despite promises of pothole-free roads, the audit describes the BMC's large-scale concretisation drive as having evolved into a system that disproportionately benefits a limited set of contractors. Promises of affordable and efficient public transport have also fallen short. The BEST undertaking has seen its bus fleet shrink by 33% since 2017, reducing last-mile connectivity for large sections of the city. Basic civic services remain severely compromised. The report finds that nearly 69% of community toilets in slum areas continue to have dysfunctional water connections, rendering them unusable and unsafe, a failure that disproportionately affects women's health, safety, and mobility....