Six BJP corporators in PCMC mayor race

BJP set to pick next mayor as open category reservation fuels intense lobbying

- Varad Bhatkhande

The reservation for the mayoral post of the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) has been declared as an open category following a lottery conducted on Thursday, triggering intense political manoeuvring within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which secured a decisive mandate by winning 84 of the total 128 seats in the civic body.

With the BJP enjoying an overwhelming majority, it is certain that the next mayor will be from the party. However, the open category reservation has significantly expanded the pool of aspirants, setting the stage for stiff internal competition and lobbying among senior corporators and party office-bearers.

Historically, the mayoral post in Pimpri-Chinchwad has been held by corporators from the Open, Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) categories. Former mayors include Prakash Rewale (OBC), Mangala Kadam (Open Female), Dr Vaishali Ghodekar (OBC), Aparna Doke (OBC), Yogesh Behl (Open), Mohini Lande (Open Female), Shakuntala Dharade (ST), Nitin Kalje (OBC), Rahul Jadhav (OBC) and Usha Dhore (Open Female).

There was speculation that this term's reservation might be for the Scheduled Caste category, as it remained unused in recent cycles. However, with the post declared open, the BJP leadership now faces the challenge of choosing a consensus candidate from among several strong contenders.