MUMBAI, Feb. 3 -- In a civic election marked by unexpected twists, the Eknath Shinde led-Shiv Sena on Monday chose to register its newly elected corporators with the Konkan divisional commissioner as a single party. It has thus ignored the suggestion of its senior alliance partner, the BJP, that the two parties register as a single group in the BMC. "We are an independent party and decided it would be best to retain our independent status in the BMC. If we had registered together, then the whip issued by the BJP would have been binding on us. Now we are free to make our own decisions in the BMC," said a senior Sena leader. Left with no choice, the BJP too registered its newly elected corporators as a separate group with the Konkan divisional commissioner on Monday. In another turn since the January 15 BMC elections, the NCP has decided to throw its weight behind the Sena, even though it will register as a separate party. This is a solid boost for Shinde, who has thus gained the support of three additional corporators. Most importantly, the NCP's support makes the Sena eligible for an additional seat in the powerful standing and improvements committee, both of which play a critical role in major financial and urban development decisions in the BMC house. Ever since the civic polls, Shinde has negotiated aggressively, drawing every ounce of power he can to stand up to his alliance partner, the BJP, with whom he has been locked in a tug-of-war ever since the assembly elections in November 2024. In the recent civic elections, the Sena won 29 seats, against the BJP's 89 in a 227-member civic house. Together, the Sena-BJP alliance has only just inched past the halfway mark, with 118 corporators. Monday's developments have, however, added another layer of intrigue. While Shinde has ensured the NCP's backing, the BJP's attempt to bring the Raj Thackeray-led MNS on board has failed. The MNS won six seats in the election. On Monday, Raj Thackeray told the media he would not support the BJP or the Shiv Sena in the mayoral election in Mumbai. And, yet, Thackeray chose a very different strategy in the Kalyan-Dombivali Municipal Corporation (KDMC), where the MNS, which has five corporators, is supporting the Sena. The BJP is still smarting from the Sena poaching Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS corporators in Kalyan-Dombivali, and the Sena's alliance with the Omi Kalani-led party in Ulhasnagar. Each move has emboldened Shinde in his quest to extract as much leverage as possible in these elections. "In the BMC too, the Sena is aggressive on their stand on key statutory committees. Although we need their support to come to power, we will not cave to their pressure tactics. The Sena will have to support our mayoral candidate during the mayoral election, but we would prefer to form an alliance for better coordination," said a BJP leader. Power-sharing negotiations are particularly complex as arrangements in Mumbai and other municipal bodies in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) impact each other. The BJP leader said the two parties are at loggerheads on the sharing of key committees like the standing committee in many corporations, not just the BMC and KDMC. "In response to the Sena wanting to share the terms in the standing committee in BMC, the BJP has demanded exactly the same in KDMC. While the BJP is unhappy with the Sena for teaming up with parties from the opposition in some municipal corporations, the Sena is upset with the BJP for shutting it out of power in Mira-Bhayander. This has stalled talks between top leaders from both parties. "Discussions will go on for at least another week," said a Sena leader. Meanwhile, Shinde has not given up his demand that the BJP share the mayor's post in Mumbai. He is demanding that a Sena candidate occupy the chair for at least one-fourth of the five-year term, if not half. The three ruling parties in the BMC chose their leaders in the civic house on Monday. While BJP corporators elected Ganesh Khankar as their group leader, Shiv Sena corporators chose Amey Ghole as their leader, and the NCP elected Dr Sayeeda Khan as their group leader....