Pune BJP Shake-Up: Amol Balwadkar Denied Ticket, Set to Contest on Ajit Pawar’s NCP Banner

In a late-night political twist ahead of the Pune Municipal Corporation elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party has denied a ticket to Amol Balwadkar. The development has triggered fresh churn in city politics, with Balwadkar now preparing to enter the fray from Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party faction.

The BJP has largely finalised its candidates for the civic polls and has begun distributing AB forms directly, even as the official list remains unpublished. In the process, the party has dropped several senior leaders. Sources indicate that around 30 to 35 former corporators have been denied tickets this time, with the party opting to field younger faces instead.

Among those affected is Amol Balwadkar, who was keen to contest from the Baner–Balewadi area. He had earlier shown interest in the Kothrud Assembly seat and had even taken a rebellious stand against senior BJP leader Chandrakant Patil during the Assembly elections. At that time, when talks of him contesting as an independent surfaced, the party leadership intervened and succeeded in persuading him to step back. A reconciliation between Patil and Balwadkar was also publicly projected.

However, the latest decision to deny him a civic poll ticket has brought matters to a head.

Reacting sharply, Balwadkar said he had withdrawn from the Assembly contest based on assurances given by Devendra Fadnavis. “I worked to ensure Chandrakant Patil’s victory with a margin of over one lakh votes. Despite that, I was betrayed. If I had been informed even two days earlier, I would have accepted the decision. But denying the ticket at the last moment left me with no choice,” he said.

Balwadkar added that he has now decided to contest from NCP led by Ajit Pawar . “A word was given and it was not kept. This will harm the BJP, not me,” he remarked.

With nominations approaching, the episode is being seen as a potential game-changer in Pune’s local political equations, especially in key western suburbs like Baner and Balewadi.