July 27th 2023.
New Delhi: On Wednesday, the Election Commission received a petition from Ajit Pawar's faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) claiming the party symbol. Along with the petition, 40 affidavits in support of Ajit Pawar from Members of Parliament and legislators of his faction were also submitted. In response, the Sharad Pawar group has filed a caveat, urging to be heard first.
Addressing the situation, Sharad Pawar stated firmly that he will not allow anyone to snatch his party's symbol after Ajit Pawar's move. He emphasised his experience of fighting on various symbols in the past and expressed confidence that such tactics would not work against him.
Meanwhile, in Maharashtra, the state election commission (SEC) has initiated preparations for all pending local body polls, anticipating them to be held in September-October this year. The SEC has instructed its staff to have the voter list ready by September for all civic bodies, zilla parishads, and nagar panchayats where elections are due. The SEC clarified that this is a routine exercise carried out before every election, and no official dates for the polls have been announced yet.
It's worth noting that the state must constitute a dedicated Other Backward Class (OBC) commission to implement the OBC quota in local body polls, as directed by the Supreme Court in March of the previous year. However, the matter remains pending in court.
Notably, elections have been overdue for nearly a year in 15 corporations in the state, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). The delay in BMC's mayoral elections, in particular, has piqued curiosity, and due to the impact of Covid waves, the polls were postponed by the government. As the terms of 24 municipal corporations have also expired, all eyes are set on the BMC elections.
The situation in Maharashtra has been further complicated by the recent heavy rains that have caused significant damage in the state. Dy CM Ajit Pawar has sought concrete proposals from the administration and district collectors to address the situation in landslide-prone areas. The state is hoping that the elections and the repair of the affected areas will be conducted in a timely manner.
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