MUMBAI, Jan. 8 -- With barely days left for campaigning ahead of the January 15 elections to 29 local bodies, political activity in Wadala's ward 178 briefly came to a standstill, a pause triggered not by voter fatigue, but by simmering resentment within the alliance itself. Campaigning by workers of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) was suspended till Tuesday after the seat was allotted to the MNS, despite its weak showing in the ward during the 2017 Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections, where it finished sixth. The decision left local Sena (UBT) leaders and cadres deeply dissatisfied. For weeks, there had been near-universal expectation on the ground that Madhuri Manjrekar, a long-time Sena (UBT) worker with strong local presence, would be fielded from the ward. Her standing within the party had only grown after former corporator Amey Ghole defected to the Shinde-led Shiv Sena, leaving the Sena (UBT) organisation in Wadala in need of rebuilding, a task Manjrekar helped shoulder. "On August 15 last year, party chief Uddhav Thackeray asked me to start preparations for the civic polls, and I began work immediately," Manjrekar said. She went on to make full campaign arrangements, from hiring an LED van to printing flags and completing documentation. Even after the ward was declared a general seat, she was asked to continue preparations. "I filled the green forms, kept all documents ready, but till the very last moment I did not receive the AB form," she said. As uncertainty dragged on, local MNS workers approached her, informing her that their party intended to contest the ward. Manjrekar said she sought clarity from the Sena (UBT) leadership and visited Matoshree, but returned without a clear response. The episode echoed 2017, when Manjrekar was similarly denied a ticket. "I stayed loyal then, and I stayed loyal now. This time I had hopes, and once again, I am left without answers," she said. Meanwhile, MNS candidate Bajrang Deshmukh went ahead and filed his nomination, further fuelling local anger. After a seven-day break from public activity, Manjrekar returned to the Sena office on Ganesh Mandir Path on Tuesday, where workers welcomed her with firecrackers, a symbolic end to the standoff. Deshmukh was present to receive her and formally launch the joint campaign. "We have come together for the benefit of Mumbai and the Marathi community. Madhuri Manjrekar's presence gives me confidence that we will win," he said. Local Sena (UBT) worker Vishakha Jadhav acknowledged the discontent among cadres but said the decision to campaign was taken in larger interest. "There was anger when she didn't get the ticket. But for Wadala and for Thackeray, we decided to stand together," she said. Senior local leaders Rakesh Deshmukh and Sandeep Kamble played a key role in persuading Manjrekar to return to active campaigning. While doing so, she did not hide her disappointment. "The Sena has always stood for women. I hope no other woman worker has to go through this," she said, before formally flagging off the campaign. Laying out his agenda, Deshmukh said redevelopment of Wadala village would be his top priority. "Across Mumbai, redevelopment is moving fast. But when it comes to Wadala village, no one is ready to take the lead," he said. He added that his focus would be on employment opportunities for women rather than "freebie politics", and on giving the ward a distinct development identity....