The Hindu Business Line : Boston beats Bhuleshwar in Mumbai South

MUMBAI South sitting MP and Union Minister for Power, Mrs Jaywantiben Mehta, of the BJP has lost to first time contestant, Mr Milind Deora of the Congress (I).

Mrs Mehta, the 65-year-old veteran politician, polled 46.55 per cent of the votes as opposed to the 50.28 per cent cast in favour of the 27-year-old Mr Deora whose only exposure to politics is that he is the son of Mr Murli Deora, a former Mumbai South MP and now a Rajya Sabha member. The junior Mr Deora is a businessman and President of the Indian Merchants Chamber's young entrepreneurs wing.

Despite Mumbai South's tiny size (it is India's third smallest constituency), it is considered one of the most prestigious seats in the country since it has the highest number of corporate millionaires. The city has always been a generous donor to parties.

Mr Deora's victory is something of a surprise considering his inexperience in politics. In fact, BJP partymen prefer to put it down to "over-confidence" on the part of Mrs Mehta rather than Mr Deora's charisma.

The BJP also points a finger at the loss of about one-lakh voters who were unable to vote because their names were missing from the electoral rolls.

The fight in Mumbai South had been termed a Boston versus Bhuleshwar battle by the press, a reference to Mr Deora's Boston education and Mrs Mehta's electoral strength in the Gujarati heartland of Bhuleshwar in south Mumbai. While Mr Deora vigorously campaigned in the slums Mrs Mehta concentrated on garnering support from the trading community as well as powerful industrialists.

Winning Mumbai is a rare chance for the Congress. The party has not dominated the six Mumbai constituencies for the last 20 years.

Mr Deora will be expected to tackle the varied problems of the city in conjunction with the Congressmen who have won the other five Mumbai seats. They will be expected to put forward a wider plan for Mumbai's expansion taking into consideration housing, transport and transport related infrastructure as the main issues in the city.

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