Pune: Several prominent leaders from the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance of Congress, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT) and Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) either joined or are set to join the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP, bolstering the Mahayuti’s organisational base in Pimpri-Chinchwad. Political observers said the developments point to the ruling alliance gaining an edge ahead of the civic polls.
Several prominent leaders from MVA alliance either joined or are set to join BJP and NCP, bolstering the Mahayuti’s organisational base in Pimpri-Chinchwad. (HT)
On Saturday, Sanjog Waghere, a senior leader of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and former mayor of Pimpri-Chinchwad, joined the BJP. Waghere had contested the 2024 Lok Sabha election from the Maval constituency and is considered to wield influence in Pimpri and adjoining areas.
Earlier, Rahul Kalate, a key leader from the NCP (SP), also joined the BJP. Kalate has contested the Chinchwad assembly constituency three times and is regarded as a strong grassroots leader. Around six months ago, Ajit Ghavane, who had contested the assembly elections on an NCP (SP) ticket, joined the Ajit Pawar faction along with 37 former corporators.
The churn gathered pace on Saturday when 22 senior leaders and former corporators from various parties formally joined the BJP in Pimpri-Chinchwad. The induction programme was led by BJP MLA Mahesh Landge and is being seen as a significant organisational push ahead of the PCMC polls scheduled for January 2026.
The developments follow recent defections in Pune, where a few former BJP corporators joined the NCP, underlining the intense political manoeuvring before the civic elections. Voting for PCMC polls will be held on January 15, 2026, with counting on January 16. Both the BJP and the NCP have announced to contest independently.
Among those who joined the BJP on Saturday were Sanjog, former standing committee chairperson Usha Waghere, former deputy mayors Prabhakar Waghere and Raju Misal, former opposition leader Vinod Nadhe, former standing committee chairperson Prashant Shitole, and several ex-corporators and local leaders.
Addressing the gathering, Landge said the leaders had joined the BJP inspired by its development agenda and state leadership. “Under chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and state BJP president Ravindra Chavan, the party is focused on transparent governance and development. We are confident of securing a decisive mandate in the PCMC elections,” he said.
