The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) election office on Friday conducted the draw for reservation of seats which shook many sitting corporators of various political parties due to change of reservation in the areas they represented in the existing term. Political leaders said the change in reservation and boundaries of electoral panel would trigger defections among poll aspirants. Two sitting MNS corporators, along with one each from Congress and NCP, have already switched sides and joined BJP. The existing five-year term of PMC and PCMC general bodies would come to end by March 2017. Thus, the elections are likely to be held in February 2017 for which the election office started the process with the delimitation of electoral panels. A total of 162 corporators have to be elected for the new general body in PMC. The state government has decided to hold elections under a four-member electoral panel for the coming elections. Accordingly, the State Election Commission (SEC) has formed 41 electoral panels, of which two will have three members each to be elected while 39 electoral panels will have four members each. There is 50 per cent reservation for women in civic bodies. So, in each category as well as electoral panel, half the seats are reserved for women. As per rules, two seats of Schedule Tribe would be reserved in electoral panel of Pune University-Wakdewadi and Kalas-Dhanori, of which the seat in Pune University would be only for women. Of the 22 seats reserved under Schedule Caste category, the 11 seats reserved for women are in Kalas-Dhanori, Pune University-Wakdewadi, Aundh-Bopodi, Kasba Peth-Somwar Peth, Khadakmal Ali-Mahatma Phule Peth, Mohammadwadi-Kausarbaug, Salisbury Park-Maharishinagar, Navi Peth-Parvati, Sahakarnagar-Padmavati, Market Yard-Lower Indiranagar and Upper Super Indiranagar. The remaining 11 seats of Schedule Caste category are in Phulenagar-Nagpur Chawl Vimannagar-Somnathnagar, Kharadi-Chandannagar, Yerawada, Deccan Gymkhana-Model colony, Lohianagar-Kasewadi, Tadiwala Road-Sassoon Hospital, Koregaon Park-Ghorpadi, Ramtekdi-Syednagar, Jantavasahat-Dattawadi and Kondhwa Budhruk-Yeolewadi. A total of 44 seats have been reserved for Other Backward Class category of which 22 seats for women are in Kalas-Dhanori, Phulenagar-Nagpurchawl, Vimannagar-Somnathnagar, Kharadi-Chandannagar, Vadgaonsheri-Kalyaninagar, Yerawada, Aundh-Bopodi, Baner-Balewadi-Pashan, Mayur colony-Dahanukar colony, Deccan Gymkhana-Model colony, Shaniwar Peth-Sadashiv Peth, Rasta Peth-Raviwar Peth, Khadakmal Ali-Mahatma Phule Peth, Lohianagar-Kasewadi, Tadiwala Road-Sassoon Hospital, Koregaon Park-Ghorpadi, Hadapsar Gaothan-Satavwadi, Ramtekdi-Syednagar, Jantavasahat-Dattawadi, Upper Super Indiranagar, Dhankawadi-Ambegaon Pathar and Kondhwa Budhruk-Yeolewadi. The other 22 seats reserved for Other Backward Class category are Pune University-Wakdewadi, Bavdhan-Kothrud Depot, Rambaug colony-Shivteerthnagar, Erandwane-Happy Colony, Shaniwar Peth-Sadashiv Peth, Kasba Peth-Somwar Peth, Rasta Peth-Raviwar Peth, Khadakmal Ali-Mahatma Phule Peth, Lohianagar-Kasewadi, Tadiwala Road-Sassoon Hospital, Mundhwa-Magarpatta City, Hadapsar Gaothan-Satavwadi, Wanowrie, Kondhwa Khurd-Meethanagar, Karvenagar, Warje Malwadi, Vadgaon Dhayari-Suncity, Vadgaon Budhruk-Hingane Khurd, Sahakarnagar-Padmavati, Market Yard-Lower Indiranagar, Rajiv Gandhi Park-Balajinagar and Ambegaon Dattanagar-Katraj Gaothan. The remaining 94 seats of the total 162 would be for open category with 47 seats reserved for women candidates. Municipal Commissioner Kunal Kumar said a detailed map of each of the 41 electoral panels would be made public on Monday as per the election commission directions and thrown open for suggestions and objections from citizens till October 25. “The PMC election office would collect the suggestions and objections at civic head quarters, election office in Savarkar Bhavan alongwith each of the 15 ward offices across city,” he said. Kumar denied any political interference in the delimitation process saying it was an exercise in confidentiality.
