Pune: Congress, NCP (SP) Accuse PMC Of Bias In Draft Ward Structure, Demand Corrections
Pune: Congress, NCP (SP) Accuse PMC Of Bias In Draft Ward Structure, Demand Corrections
Pune, September 3, 2025: The Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction – NCP SP) have raised strong objections to the Pune Municipal Corporation’s (PMC) draft ward structure, alleging that it violates guidelines issued by the State Election Commission. Leaders of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) held a press conference on Tuesday, submitting a formal objection letter to Municipal Commissioner Naval Kishore Ram.
Congress city unit president Arvind Shinde claimed that the delimitation process was conducted under political pressure from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He alleged that the draft plan deliberately excluded reservations for Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) candidates in certain wards. “For example, BJP leader Ganesh Bidkar’s ward has no reservation. Additionally, slum areas have been divided in such a way that SC and ST candidates are deprived of fair representation,” Shinde said.
He further argued that the ward boundaries were drawn without administrative logic. “In some cases, areas from four different assembly constituencies have been merged into a single ward. This not only creates confusion but also appears to serve the political convenience of the ruling party, especially in slum-dominated areas,” he added.
Echoing these concerns, NCP (SP) city president Prashant Jagtap said the proposed ward structure lacked geographical coherence. “Natural boundaries have been ignored. Wards have been stitched together arbitrarily. For example, in Congress leader Shinde’s ward, the boundary stretches from Shaniwarwada to Yerawada. Similarly, in the Pune Station ward, areas across the river have been forcibly added, violating delimitation norms,” Jagtap stated.
Several MVA leaders, including NCP MLA Bapu Pathare and party spokesperson Ankush Kakade, were present at the press conference. They jointly demanded that the PMC immediately correct the anomalies in the draft ward list to ensure fair representation and compliance with state election commission norms.
