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Summary:

On January 1, 2026, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) announced that his party is in discussions with the Shiv Sena, led by Eknath Shinde, regarding seat sharing for the upcoming Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad civic polls, scheduled for January 15, 2026. While the NCP previously stated a tie-up with Sharad Pawar’s NCP(SP) for these corporations, Pawar indicated that the final picture of alliances will be clearer after the scrutiny of nomination papers. He also addressed concerns about candidates with criminal backgrounds, explaining that those nominations were the decision of their alliance partner, the RPI (Sachin Kharat faction). The elections to 29 municipal corporations in Maharashtra will be held on January 15th, 2026.

News Article:

NCP in Talks with Shiv Sena for Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad Civic Polls

Pune, Maharashtra – January 1, 2026 – Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar announced today that the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) is engaged in discussions with the Shiv Sena, led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, concerning seat sharing for the highly anticipated Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad municipal corporation elections. The polls are slated for January 15th.

Speaking to reporters after paying tribute at the ‘Jay Stambh’ near Pune, Pawar stated that while talks with Shiv Sena are ongoing, the final alignment of alliances will become clearer after the scrutiny and withdrawal period for candidate nominations concludes.

“We are contesting in alliance with NCP(SP) in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad. We are also having talks with Shiv Sena leader Uday Samant. Possibly, we will come to an understanding over some seats with Shiv Sena for these civic bodies,” Pawar said.

The NCP’s involvement in multiple potential alliances highlights the fluid nature of political partnerships in this year’s civic polls. While the NCP and Shiv Sena are part of the ruling Mahayuti coalition, the NCP(SP) belongs to the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi. This year’s elections have seen several instances of parties aligning with rivals at the state level in various cities.

Pawar addressed concerns about candidates with criminal backgrounds, specifically the nomination of Sonali Andekar and Laxmi Andekar, daughter-in-law and sister-in-law of gang leader Suryakant alias Bandu Andekar. He clarified that these nominations were the prerogative of the RPI (Sachin Kharat faction), with whom the NCP has formed an alliance.

The nomination process for the January 15th elections began on December 23, 2025 and concluded on December 30, 2025. The deadline for withdrawal of nominations is January 2, 2026, with the final list of candidates to be published on January 3, 2026. The counting of votes will be conducted the following day. The municipal corporations, along with 27 others, will have their elections on January 15th.

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