Notorious Criminals Contesting Pune Civic Elections Raise Concerns

The upcoming Pune Municipal Corporation elections feature candidates with criminal backgrounds, including relatives of notorious gang leaders. The Nationalist Congress Party has nominated these individuals, raising concerns about the integrity of the electoral process.

India

-Krishna Kripa

Individuals
with
criminal
backgrounds
or
alleged
connections
to
gangs
are
participating
in
the
upcoming
Pune
Municipal
Corporation
elections.
The
Nationalist
Congress
Party
(NCP),
led
by
Ajit
Pawar,
has
nominated
Sonali
Andekar
and
Laxmi
Andekar,
relatives
of
gang
leader
Suryakant
alias
Bandu
Andekar.
All
three
are
accused
in
the
murder
of
Bandu
Andekar’s
grandson,
Ayush
Komkar,
and
are
currently
in
jail.

Bandu
Andekar,
along
with
his
relatives,
recently
submitted
their
nomination
papers.
They
were
escorted
by
police
from
Yerawada
Central
Jail
to
the
nomination
centres
in
Bhavani
Peth.
Bandu
Andekar
is
contesting
as
an
independent
candidate.
The
NCP
also
nominated
Jayashree
Marne,
wife
of
gangster
Gajanan
alias
Gajya
Marne,
and
Bapu
Nayar,
a
local
goon.

NCP’s
Political
Strategy

NCP’s
city
unit
president,
Subhash
Jagtap,
stated
that
the
party
has
formed
an
alliance
with
the
Republican
Party
of
India
(RPI),
led
by
Sachin
Kharat.
Through
this
alliance,
Sonali
and
Laxmi
Andekar
have
been
nominated
from
ward
number
23.
Despite
this
alliance,
both
candidates
will
contest
using
the
NCP’s
symbol,
the
clock.

Jagtap
justified
their
nominations
by
highlighting
the
Andekar
family’s
political
history.
Vatsala
Andekar
was
a
former
mayor
of
Pune.
Udaykant
Andekar,
Bandu’s
late
brother,
served
as
a
corporator.
Vanraj
Andekar,
Bandu’s
son
who
was
killed
by
Ganesh
Komkar,
was
also
an
NCP
corporator.

Criminal
Allegations

Jayashree
Marne
previously
contested
civic
polls.
Her
husband,
Gajanan
Marne,
faces
multiple
charges
under
the
Maharashtra
Control
of
Organised
Crime
Act
(MCOCA).
Bapu
Nayar
is
accused
of
crimes
like
attempted
murder
and
land
grabbing.
These
nominations
have
raised
eyebrows
due
to
their
criminal
associations.

The
NCP
has
also
allied
with
Sharad
Pawar’s
NCP
SP
for
these
elections.
According
to
Jagtap,
the
NCP
will
contest
125
seats
while
the
NCP
SP
will
compete
for
40
seats.
This
strategic
partnership
aims
to
strengthen
their
position
in
the
municipal
elections.

The
involvement
of
candidates
with
criminal
links
has
sparked
discussions
about
political
ethics
and
accountability.
The
focus
remains
on
how
these
developments
will
influence
voter
sentiment
in
the
upcoming
elections.

With
inputs
from
PTI