Mumbai: The Shiv Sena received a jolt in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) as its corporator from ward number 91 in Santacruz (west), Sagun Naik, was disqualified by the small causes court.

The disqualification came on the back of Congress candidate Mohammed Rafique Mustafa Hussain challenging Naik’s election and finishing second behind him in the February 2017 municipal election.

Last year, the decision to disqualify Naik was taken by the committee under the Caste Certificate Act 2000, which allows a competent authority to declare the councilor as invalid for providing fake caste certificates. It also stated that Naik did not belong to the other backward caste (OBC) category.

Mr Hussain had complained that the Sena corporator issued fake caste certificates, following which, the Konkan commission took cognisance of the issue and issued an order to the corporator to provide original documents. Since the sitting corporator Naik was unable to prove the allegations against him as false, he was disqualified.

Currently the Sena, which is the ruling party in the BMC, has a total of 94 corporators; BJP has 86; Congress 31; NCP 9; MNS 1; and SP 6. After Naik’s disqualification, the Sena’s number of corporators will decrease by one in the civic body.