PCMC Elections 2026: High-Profile Debut Under Pressure As NCP’s Siddharth Bansode Trails In Pimpri-Chinchwad's Multi-Cornered Contest

Pimpri: NCP candidate Siddharth Anna Bansode, son of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Deputy Speaker and Pimpri MLA Anna Bansode, is trailing by a narrow margin in Ward No. 9 (Nehru Nagar–Kharalwadi) as counting continues on Friday. Voting for the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) Elections was concluded on Thursday evening.

Siddharth Bansode is behind BJP candidate Kamlesh Dashrath Walke by just six votes in what has turned into a closely fought contest.

According to the latest counting trends, Kamlesh Walke has secured 737 votes, while Siddharth Bansode has received 731 votes. The contest, which was widely perceived as a one-sided affair ahead of polling due to Siddharth’s political lineage and debut candidature, has instead emerged as a tight battle.

Siddharth Bansode’s entry into the race had faced criticism even before the elections, with sections within political circles opposing his candidature on grounds of nepotism. Despite the opposition, the Nationalist Congress Party went ahead and fielded him, marking his formal political debut. He is now facing stiff competition from BJP’s Kamlesh Walke, who has taken a marginal lead as counting progresses.

The ward has witnessed a multi-cornered contest, with as many as 11 candidates in the fray. Apart from Walke and Bansode, the candidates include Umesh Ram Khandare of the Congress, Baba Balu Kamble of the BSP, Sagar Gopal Suryawanshi of Shiv Sena (UBT), Dhammaraj Navnath Salwe of NCP–Sharadchandra Pawar, Shubham Ram Tandale of Shiv Sena, Ashok Chandrakant Bansode of the VBA, Bhikaram Kisan Kamble of the Republican Sena, and independents Akshay Sanjay Telangi and Pravin Rambhau Kamble.

At the overall civic level, the Bharatiya Janata Party is currently leading in around 50 seats, while the Ajit Pawar-led NCP and other opposition parties are trailing behind in PCMC. The final outcome of the closely contested Ward No. 9 seat is keenly awaited, as even a handful of votes could swing the result either way.