The Shinde camp-BJP alliance and opposition parties will be pitted against each other in the elections to 7751 gram panchayats and direct election of their sarpanch.
The State Election Commission (SEC) on Wednesday announced a poll schedule accordingly polling will take place on December 18 and counting on December 20.
This is the first major test between the ruling and opposition especially after the Eknath Shinde-led rebellion that resulted in the collapse of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government and the formation of Shinde-Fadnavis government in Maharashtra.
The 'mini Assembly' polls
The upcoming elections are termed as ‘’mini Assembly’’ polls by the ruling and opposition parties. Shinde camp-BJP alliance is expected to reach out to the voters playing up over 700 decisions taken by the state government and its resolve for expediting the development process. However, Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray, NCP and Congress, which are likely to jointly contest these polls, are planned to target the Shinde Fadnavis government on a number of issues including the increasing farmers distress, its apathy towards farmers despite severe damage caused to crops due to heavy rains and floods, burgeoning cases of farmers suicides and flight of key projects outside Maharashtra leading to a loss of jobs to youth.
The State Election Commission Commissioner Mr UPS Madan said that the concerned Tahasildars will publish election notices on November 18 for gram panchayats whose tenure is expiring between October and December 2022 and also for the newly established gram panchayats.
Nomination papers will be filed from November 28 2022 to December 2 while scrutiny of nomination papers will take place on December 5. The last date for withdrawal of nomination papers will be December 7 till 3 pm and distribution of election symbols will be done on the same day.
Voting will be held on December 18 from 7:30 AM to 5:30 PM. Voting time will be till 3 pm in Naxal affected areas only. Counting of votes will be held on December 20.
District and Taluka wise number of Gram Panchayats
Ahmednagar- 203, Akola- 266, Amravati- 257, Aurangabad- 219, Beed- 704, Bhandara- 363, Buldana- 279, Chandrapur- 59, Dhule- 128, Gadchiroli- 27, Gondia- 348, Hingoli- 62, Jalgaon- 140, Jalna- 266, Kolhapur- 475, Latur- 351, Nagpur- 237, Nandurbar- 123, Osmanabad- 166, Palghar- 63, Parbhani- 128, Pune- 221, Raigad- 240, Ratnagiri- 222, Sangli- 452, Satara- 319, Sindhudurg- 325, Solapur- 189, Thane- 42, Wardha- 113, Washim- 287, Yavatmal- 100, Nanded- 181 and Nashik- 196. Total- 751.
