THANE, Jan. 21 -- He's ducking the law for now but Vilas Patil, 57, might emerge as kingmaker in elections to the Bhiwandi Nizampura Municipal Corporation (BNMC). The civic poll has delivered a fractured verdict in the BNMC, with the Congress bagging 30 seats in the 90-member house. The BJP is in second place with 22 seats, Shiv Sena with 12, NCP (SP) 12, Samajwadi Party 6, Konark Vikas Aghadi 4, and Bhiwandi Vikas Aghadi with 4 seats. With none of the major parties even close to the 46-seat halfway mark required for a simple majority, political parties here are on tenterhooks. They know that Patil, who heads the Konark Vikas Aghadi (KVA), could hold the key to who rules the BNMC. They also know his strength goes beyond the four seats won by the KVA in this election. Bhiwandi is a power-loom town that has evolved into an important logistics hub on the outskirts of Mumbai. A local strongman, Patil is a road contractor with deep pockets and an uncanny ability to navigate a complex political chessboard. He and his father before him have maintained a stranglehold over the BNMC for nearly four decades. Patil and his wife, Pratibha, have each served one term as mayor of Bhiwandi, despite the KVA's meagre numbers in the BNMC. Ahead of the 2024 state assembly elections, Patil joined the Congress hoping to secure a party ticket. After being denied the nomination, he contested the election as an independent candidate but lost to the BJP's Mahesh Chaugule. Patil's father, Raghunath Patil, was a senior Congress leader who helped strengthen the party in the region in the 1970s. Vilas inherited his father's political mantle and would often describe himself as "Congressi-first". A five-time corporator, Patil, however, split the Congress after it secured a majority of 47 seats in the 2019 civic elections. At the time, Patil broke away with 18 Congress corporators and, with the support of the BJP, installed his wife, Pratibha, as mayor under the banner of his local party, the KVA. Political parties fear that Patil could once again play a decisive role by splitting parties or garnering cross-party support. No one knows which way he'll go, they confess. His supporters claim it is Patil's clout in Bhiwandi's political circles that got him implicated by the BJP in violent clashes at the weekend. In the civic polls, Vilas, Pratibha and their son Mayuresh Patil won from panel number one. Mayuresh, an advocate, defeated Meet Chaugule, son of BJP MLA Mahesh Chaugule. Tensions between the two families and their supporters had been simmering since the early stages of the election campaign, with several incidents of violence reported. Following Mayuresh's victory, BJP supporters allegedly pelted stones at Vilas Patil's residence during a victory rally on Sunday night, injuring Pratibha. Vilas and his supporters allegedly retaliated by attacking BJP supporters and vandalising a BJP office at Shivaji Chowk in Bhiwandi, triggering unrest and prompting heavy police deployment. Bhiwandi Nizampur police eventually booked party workers from both the KVA and BJP, including Vilas Patil's sons, brother and nephew. Shital Raut, investigating officer, Crime Branch, Thane Police, told HT, "We have booked 50 persons in the case under various sections relating to attempt to murder and rioting. Of these, 36 are associated with Vilas Patil and 14 with Mahesh Chaugule." Patil, known to strong-arm his way through tough situations, has been absconding ever since charges were brought against him. A fugitive for now, Vilas Patil may yet decide the fate of the BNMC....