MUMBAI, Jan. 2 -- The battle for control over the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is an epic one for the two Shiv Sena camps - one led by Uddhav Thackeray, son of the party's founder Bal Thackeray, and the other led by Eknath Shinde, who split the party and closed ranks with the BJP in 2022. For nearly three decades, the BMC and its powerful committees have enabled the Shiv Sena to influence Mumbai's development agenda. Now, as elections approach, the ballot will determine the natural inheritor of the Sena's civic legacy in Mumbai. Against this backdrop, the presence of experienced former corporators is important beyond mere numbers. They bring with them institutional memory and lend heft to the parties they represent. Let's take a look at some veterans who have crossed over from the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) to the Shinde-led Sena, and what it could mean for each party. Rajul Patel, a four-time corporator who joined the Sena on January 27, 2025, will contest from Jogeshwari west's Ward No 61. Patel was first elected to the BMC in 1997 and, in her last term in 2017-2022, served as chairperson of the public health committee and as a member of the standing committee. Party insiders said Patel was unhappy with the tussle with MLA Haroon Khan, who was given a Sena (UBT) ticket for the Versova assembly constituency. "She felt sidelined and there were ideological differences. Many grassroots workers believe that the Sena (UBT) isn't aligned with Balasaheb Thackeray's Hindutva ideology," said a party insider. Patel told HT, "I have been a corporator for four terms and when I contested the assembly elections as an independent candidate in 2019, I secured second position. I have worked for people across communities and won four times in the last 20 years," she said. In neighbouring Jogeshwari west, contesting from Ward No 62 is Raju Pednekar, switched from the Sena (UBT) to the Shinde camp. A corporator since 2007, Pednekar has chaired the law committee and the Prabhag committee, and was a member of the improvements committee for over a decade. Detailing his work in the ward, Pednekar said, "This is a Muslim-dominated ward but I worked hard here. I constructed a six-storey CBSE school, where many students get a free education. I developed an 11-storey maternity hospital." He added, "I was instrumental in the extension of the Mrinaltai Gore bridge and the reconstruction of the century-old Oshiwara bridge. I addressed flooding issues on SV Road by connecting the stormwater drain to the Oshiwara river, widened the river and introduced sewage treatment plants." Pednekar said voters would judge on performance rather than religious identity. Lalbaug-Parel's Ward No 204 has thrown up a surprise. Long considered a safe seat for the Sena, Anil Kokil, a Sena (UBT) loyalist, switched allegiance to the Sena just before filing his nomination papers on Tuesday. The Sena (UBT) fielded shakha pramukh Kiran Tavde from the ward. "I was a shakha pramukh for ten years and was elected as a corporator in 2017. I want to work for the common people and that is my only motivation," Kokil said. The Sena had named Arun Dalvi for the seat, but he withdrew when Kokil expressed interest in joining the party on Tuesday. Mangesh Satamkar, whose wife Mansi is contesting from Ward No 175 in Sion-Koliwada, has fielded his wife in a ward reserved for women. "I've been a corporator for 35 years since 1992. I held various positions in the BMC. I was chairman of the education committee for four years and then a member of MMRDA and MHADA," he said. Satamkar left the Sena (UBT) in 2023, claiming he did not receive support from the party leadership during a personal crisis. "I got help from Eknath Shinde ji. I was a corporator for 35 years and if the party doesn't help me in times of need, why should I continue to remain with them," he said. Another prominent Sena contestant is Yamini Jadhav, who has been with the party since 2012. She served as a corporator from 2012 until 2017. Jadhav was chairperson of the civic markets committee and a member of the education committee. When she became MLA from Byculla in 2019, it was the first time the Sena had won this seat. When Eknath Shinde split the Sena in 2022, Jadhav stuck with the party. She is contesting the upcoming BMC elections from Ward No 209 in Byculla, her home turf. A former corporator from Antop Hill, Trushna Vishwasrao, switched from the Sena (UBT) to the Sena in July 2023 as she was aligned with Shinde's ideology and style of working. A corporator since 1992, Vishwasrao was a leader of the house in the BMC and chairperson of the civic market and gardens committee. After she lost the civic polls in 2017, Thackeray had included her as a nominated corporator to the civic house due to her work as leader of the house in 2014. She was also vibhag pramukh and sampark pramukh in the Sena (UBT)....