Pune Civic Body's Mayoral Elections Won't Be Unopposed As Congress, NCP Enter Fray

In the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) elections held on January 15, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the single-largest party, winning 119 of the 165 seats. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), led by the late Ajit Pawar, won 27 seats, Congress won 15 seats, NCP (SP) won three seats, and Shiv Sena (UBT) won one seat.

Looking at the numbers, it was expected that the elections for the posts of mayor and deputy mayor would be unopposed, as only the BJP has single-handedly crossed the magic figure of 83. However, the elections will not go unopposed as the NCP and Congress have both fielded their candidates. This has necessitated an election on February 6.

Earlier in the day, the BJP announced Manjusha Nagpure and Parshuram Wadekar as its nominees for the posts of mayor and deputy mayor, respectively.

Nagpure, a three-time corporator, won the civic body elections unopposed from Ward No. 35B (Suncity–Manikbaug) this time. A 46-year-old postgraduate in Business Management, she belongs to a family with a staunch Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) background. Meanwhile, Wadekar, a Republican Party of India (RPI) corporator, won from Ward No. 8A (Aundh-Bopodi) by defeating NCP candidate Vinod Ranpise with a margin of 8,747 votes.

Meanwhile, the Congress party has fielded Ashwini Landge for the post of mayor and Sahil Kedari for deputy mayor. On the other hand, despite earlier indications that it would stay out of the contest, citing the recent death of Ajit Pawar, the NCP filed nominations -- Sheetal Sawant for the post of mayor and Datta Bahirat for the post of deputy mayor. This development was confirmed by party leaders Chetan Tupe and Sunil Tingre.

As per the draw, the post of mayor in Pune was reserved for a woman corporator elected from the general category this time. The reservation for the mayor’s post will remain valid for 2.5 years, with another draw scheduled in 2028.