First official move since Ajit Pawar’s death: Son Parth picks 3 NCP leaders to be PCMC coopted corporators

While Seema Sawale belongs to SC community, Faisal Shaikh is from minority Muslim community and Rajendra Jagtap is from Maratha community. “Parth has taken recourse to social engineering in Pimpri-Chinchwad. His first move has gone down well with NCP rank and file,” said an NCP leader.

Behl said Parth Pawar wanted to appoint strong leaders who would effective raise people’s voice in PCMC and outside. ”Parth said if the leaders can aggressively raise people’s voice in different fora but have lost by small margins of vote, they should be given a chance to again represent the people,” Behl said.

NCP leaders said Seema Sawale has been specially selected after her speech at an all-party condelence meeting in memory of Ajit Pawar went viral. Sawale was scathing in her attack on BJP MLA Mahesh Landge for allegedly trying to belittle the contribution of the Deputy Chief Minister to the development of Pimpri-Chinchwad during civic election campaigning.

Sawale had also rapped Landge for being disrespectful towards the Deputy Chief Minister. “Seema Sawale’s speech had gone viral in Maharashtra. NCP leaders praised her for reprimanded Landge for speaking against Ajit Pawar during the PCMC elections. It was but natural that Ajit Pawar’s family would nominate her as coopted corporator to represent the party in PCMC,” said political analyst Avinash Chilekar.

Besides Sawale, Parth also reposed faith in long-time party loyalist Faisal Shaikh, who has risen from the ranks and had never left the party in the last 25 years. “I am the founder-member of the party in Pimpri-Chinchwad. I have been in the party since it came into being in 1999. I was initally ward president, then became general secretary and then Ajitdada appointed me as the chairman of the PCMC education committee in 2013,” Shaikh, who is currently the party’s working president, said.

Shaikh said Parth Pawar had called up that morning and told him to work relentlessly for the people including the minority committee. “Parth told me that we have realise the dream of Ajitdada to ensure all-round development of the city. He said we have to move ahead while taking care of the needs and aspirations of different communities,” Shaikh said.

Since NCP came into being in 1999, Parth’s father Ajit Pawar had been at the helm of the affairs of the PCMC. The NCP ruled PCMC single-handedly for 20 years until BJP dislodged it from power in 2017. The rapid pace of development which the industrial city witnessed in two decades had been credited to the efforts and initiatives of Ajit Pawar who as Deputy Chief Minister approved and implemented several development projects in the city.

After Ajit Pawar’s death on January 28 in a plane crash, the NCP rank and file in Pimpri-Chinchwad was in a fix vis-a-vis who would be shepherding the flock in the industrial city. ”With his decisive move, Parth has infused life in rank and file,” said an NCP leader.

In all, PCMC will have 10 coopted corporators who are nominated ones and not elected one. The BJP which enjoys brute majority (84 corporators) can have 7 coopted corporators while NCP can have three as per its numbers (37) corporators. Party group leaders submit the names of the nominated members to the PCMC. The final decision is taken in civic general body meeting.