Pune MLC Election Was ‘Match-Fixing’, Alleges Congress Leader Arvind Shinde; Writes To Rahul Gandhi Seeking Probe
Pune MLC Election Was ‘Match-Fixing’, Alleges Congress Leader Arvind Shinde; Writes To Rahul Gandhi Seeking Probe
Pune, June 11, 2026: Senior Congress leader and former Pune city president Arvind Shinde has alleged that the recent Pune Legislative Council (MLC) election was a case of “match-fixing” and claimed that a deliberate effort is underway to weaken the Congress in Pune.
Addressing a press conference on Wednesday, Shinde said he had sent an email to senior Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and K. C. Venugopal, demanding an inquiry into the matter and action against those responsible.
Shinde alleged that Congress workers had been sacrificed for political calculations and claimed that some leaders within the party were involved in efforts to marginalise the Congress in Pune. He said an independent observer from the party’s central leadership should be sent to investigate the developments.
According to Shinde, during the Pune Municipal Corporation election, repeated attempts were made to initiate discussions with leaders of the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar), but they did not respond and instead contested against Congress candidates. As a result, he claimed, 26 Congress corporators lost their elections.
Despite their reservations, Congress leaders followed the party directive and extended support to the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar faction) candidate in the Legislative Council election, Shinde said. However, he alleged that the candidate later withdrew from the contest without informing Congress leaders.
Shinde further accused the NCP faction of pursuing a dual strategy—preventing Congress from contesting independently while simultaneously aligning with the BJP. He claimed this amounted to a larger conspiracy to weaken the Congress and demanded that party leadership identify and act against those responsible.
He also alleged that Pune Congress in-charge Satej Patil was kept out of the decision-making process. According to Shinde, local leaders were told that the move had been approved by the state Congress leadership, prompting him to escalate the matter to the All India Congress Committee.
Referring to Rahul Gandhi’s message of “Daro Mat” (Do Not Fear), Shinde said Congress workers expected the same standards of justice that were applied in party matters in Amravati and Chandrapur.
Questioning the circumstances surrounding the uncontested election, Shinde also referred to remarks made by Supriya Sule that the withdrawal was intended to prevent horse-trading during voting. “If the election itself did not take place, should we conclude that the horse-trading happened among senior leaders?” he asked.
Shinde said he had exercised his constitutional right to lodge a complaint and had sought time to meet senior Congress leaders in Delhi to present his concerns directly.
The allegations have added a fresh dimension to the political debate surrounding the Pune MLC election, which ultimately concluded without a contest.
