Pawar sets terms for civic body polls, says no tie-up with BJP

Party leaders said Pawar’s guidance reflects a deliberate effort to avoid the perception that the party is taking sides in the escalating OBC–Maratha conflict over reservation entitlements

MUMBAI: With the first phase of municipal council and nagar panchayat elections scheduled for December 2, Nationalist Congress Party (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday reviewed organisational preparedness and laid down a clear strategic framework for candidate selection and alliances.

Pawar sets terms for civic body polls, says no tie-up with BJP

At a meeting held at the YB Chavan Centre in Mumbai with senior leaders, including state president Shashikant Shinde, Jayant Patil, MP Supriya Sule and several MPs and MLAs, Pawar asked the party to avoid any alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the local level. However, he left the option of arrangements with parties from the ruling Mahayuti, such as the Shiv Sena led by deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde or the NCP faction led by deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, open, depending on local political dynamics.

The key emphasis of the discussions was on candidate selection for seats reserved for Other Backward Classes (OBCs), a sensitive issue amid the ongoing Maratha-OBC reservation tensions. Pawar advised leaders to prioritise candidates from long-recognised OBC communities. Candidates from the Maratha community who recently obtained Kunbi certificates after the Manoj Jarange-Patil agitation should be considered only when local political equations and candidate availability demand it.

Party leaders said Pawar’s guidance reflects a deliberate effort to avoid the perception that the party is taking sides in the escalating OBC–Maratha conflict over reservation entitlements.

In addition, Pawar flagged the need for strict verification of caste certificates of Scheduled Caste candidates, citing previous controversies where individuals contested elections using fraudulent documents. “We were told to ensure rigorous scrutiny so that tickets go only to genuine beneficiaries of the SC quota,” a leader present at the meeting said.

Another MP, requesting anonymity, said the party has been permitted to take alliance decisions locally, except with the BJP. “On OBC seats, preference is for traditional OBC candidates. Candidates with newly issued Kunbi certificates will be considered only after assessing the local caste arithmetic and availability of strong candidates,” the MP said.