Sale of nomination forms for mayor, deputy mayor posts begins

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

The election for the posts of mayor and deputy mayor will be held on February 10 at 11 am, and the municipal corporation administration had announced the election programme last week itself. The nomination forms will be available at the municipal secretary section from 10 am on Wednesday to 3 pm on Friday. The deadline for submission of nomination forms will be 6 pm on Friday. Meanwhile, there is keen interest in who within the BJP will be authorised to file nominations.

On February 10 at 11 am, a special meeting of the municipal corporation will commence under the chairmanship of presiding officer and district collector Deelip Swami. As soon as the meeting begins, the presiding officer will scrutinise the received nomination forms. A 15-minute window will be given for withdrawal of nominations. The names of candidates contesting for the posts of mayor and deputy mayor will be announced in Marathi alphabetical order. When a candidate’s name is called out, the corporators may vote in support of that candidate. These votes will be recorded in the proceedings, and the names of corporators will also be noted. In the event of a tie, the presiding officer will decide the result by drawing lots. The decision on who will draw the lot will be taken by a majority of the municipal corporation members. The candidate whose name appears on the slip will be declared elected, as stated in the election programme.

Mayor to be from BJP

In the municipal corporation elections, 115 corporators were elected from 29 prabhags. The BJP has 57 corporators and requires just one more vote to secure a majority. For the first time in the history of the civic body, voters have brought a single party close to a clear majority. A decision is yet to be taken on whether to include the Shinde Sena in the municipal ruling alliance. If the Shinde Sena remains with the BJP for five years, it will have to be given the post of deputy mayor. However, the BJP will not give the post of standing committee chairperson to the Shinde Sena.

All eyes on BJP’s decision

Several BJP corporators are aspiring for the post of mayor, and all contenders have been lobbying in their own ways. Ultimately, the final decision will be taken by the party leadership. There is keen anticipation over whose name will be officially announced by the party.