Pune civic polls: Less than 10 per cent candidates from minority communities

79 Muslim candidates, only 7 Christians in the fray; most of them contesting as independents

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Christian candidates, who are contesting the civic polls, with priests and religious leaders of the community. Express

LESS than 10 per cent of the 1,090 candidates contesting the civic polls on February 21 are from minority communities. A majority of these 90-odd candidates are contesting the elections as independent candidates, after their efforts to obtain tickets from political parties turned out to be futile. Among these, 79 are from the Muslim community while seven are from the Christian community.

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The Congress has given party tickets to nine Muslim candidates, while the BJP, Bahujan Samaj Party and NCP have given tickets to five Muslim candidates each. The MNS has given tickets to three Muslim candidates and Shiv Sena to two Muslim candidates. AIMIM has fielded the highest number of Muslim candidates — 14 — and the party hopes to make its presence felt in the region. Muslims are the largest minority group in Pune and they comprise 11 per cent of the city’s population. But the outgoing general body of the Pune Municipal

Corporation had only two Muslim corporators. Traditionally, Muslims have gravitated towards either the Congress or the NCP. Areas such as Mominpura, Ganj Peth and Kasewadi slums have elected corporators from either the Congress or the NCP.

However, Kondhwa, which also has a large Muslim population, has mostly voted for Shiv Sena, MNS and NCP. AIMIM MLA Imtiaz Jaleel claimed that secularism has been “used as a carrot” by other parties to garner Muslim votes. “During election time, these parties talk about their sympathy towards Muslims. However, they are not serious about either giving them tickets or getting them elected,” he said.

Noted educationist Razia Patel said while the representation of minority communities in the civic bodies was inadequate, it was next to nothing at the state and central levels. Abhay Kanta, editor of Marathi socio-political fortnightly Parivartanacha Watsuru — echoed the same sentiment, pointing out that in the state assembly, only 9 out of 288 MLAs are Muslims.

According to him, a general perception among political parties was that pitching a candidate with a Muslim surname would not attract enough votes, especially if that constituency didn’t have too many Muslim voters. At a meeting held at St Patrick’s Cathedral, Bishop of Poona, Rt Rev Thomas Dabre applauded the effort of candidates from minority communities, who are contesting the elections on their own steam.

“The church is at the forefront of development – be it in education, health and other sectors. So, political parties should encourage persons from minority communities to represent their wards and give them tickets to contest the elections,” said the Bishop, adding, “This is specially important to strengthen the secular fabric of our country”.

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Ashwini Landge, the sole Christian candidate from Panel 6, is contesting the election on a AIMIM ticket. Landge’s husband Daneyal said other parties did not want to give tickets to Christian candidates.

“I was not interested in joining politics but AIMIM’s philosophy made me change my mind,” he said. Landge has been active in the social sphere for many years and is confident of winning all four seats for the party. Panel 6 has around 3,500 Christian voters, but Landge said they are not banking only on those votes. “When we try to help people, we never ask them about their religion. We are humans first … so, I am sure I will get the support of all communities.”

Pramod Pardhe, a Christian candidate from Panel 5 (C) Vadgaonsheri-Kalyaninagar, said he decided to give the elections a shot after he saw few candidates from the community contesting the polls. “I am confident of a win as I have assured people in my ward about cleaning up garbage, ensuring clean water and providing better amenities in the municipal corporation-run schools,” said Pardhe.

Anuradha Mascarenhas

Anuradha Mascarenhas is a Senior Editor at The Indian Express, based in Pune. With a career spanning three decades, she is one of the most respected voices in Indian journalism regarding healthcare, science and environment and research developments. She also takes a keen interest in covering women's issues . Professional Background Education: A gold medalist in Communication and Journalism from Savitribai Phule Pune University and a Master’s degree in Literature. Author: She authored the biography At The Wheel Of Research, which chronicles the life and work of Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, the former Chief Scientist at the WHO. Key Focus: She combines scientific accuracy with storytelling, translating complex medical research into compelling public and human-interest narratives. Awards and Recognition Anuradha has won several awards including the Press Council of India's national award for excellence in journalism under the gender based reporting category in 2019 and the Laadli Media award (gender sensitivity -2024). A recipient of the Lokmat journalism award (gender category-2022), she was also shortlisted for the RedInk awards for excellence in journalism-2021. Her debut book At The Wheel Of Research, an exclusive biography of Dr Soumya Swaminathan the inaugural chief scientist of World Health Organisation was also nominated in the Popular Choice Category of JK Paper AUTHER awards. She has also secured competitive fellowships including the Laadli Media Fellowship (2022), the Survivors Against TB – New Research in TB Media Fellowship (2023) and is part of the prestigious 2025 India Cohort of the WomenLift Health Leadership Journey.” Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) 1. Cancer & Specialized Medical Care "Tata Memorial finds way to kill drug-resistant cancer cells" (Nov 26, 2025): Reporting on a breakthrough for triple-negative breast cancer, one of the most aggressive forms of the disease. Discipline, diet and purpose; How a 97-year-old professor defies ageing'' (Nov 15, 2025) Report about Prof Gururaj Mutalik, the first Head of Department at Pune's B J Government Medical College who at 97 credits his longevity to healthy habits and a strong sense of purpose. 2. Environmental Health (The "Breathless Pune" Series) Long-term exposure even to 'moderate' air leads to chronic heart, lung, kidney issues" (Nov 26, 2025): Part of an investigative series highlighting that even "safe" pollution levels are damaging to vital organs. "For every 10 µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 level, there was 6-8% jump in medicine sales" (Nov 23, 2025): Using commercial data to prove the direct link between air quality and respiratory illnesses in Pune. 3. Lifestyle & Wellness News "They didn't let cancer, diabetes and heart disease stop them from travelling" (Dec 22, 2025): A collaborative piece featuring survivors who share practical tips for traveling with chronic conditions. At 17, his BP shot up to 200/120 mmHG; Lancet study flags why child and teen hypertension doubled between 2000 and 2020'' (Nov 12,2025)--A report that focusses on 17-year-old-boy's hypertensive crisis and reflects the rising global trend of high blood pressure among children and adolescents. 4. Scientific Recognition & Infrastructure For promoting sci-comm, gender diversity: IUCAA woman prof highlighted in Nature" (Nov 25, 2025): Covering the global recognition of Indian women scientists in gender studies and physics. Pune researchers find a spiral galaxy like the Milky Way from early universe'' (December 3, 2025)- A report on how Indian researchers discovered a massive galaxy that existed when the universe was just 1.5 billion years old , one of the earliest to have been observed so far. Signature Beat: Health, Science & Women in Leadership Anuradha is known for her COVID-19 reportage, where she was one of the first journalists to provide detailed insights into the Covishield and Covaxin trials. She has a dedicated interest in gender diversity in health and science, often profiling women researchers who are breaking the "leaky pipeline" in STEM fields. Her writing style is scrupulous, often featuring interviews with top-tier scientists and health experts from various institutions. ... Read More

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