Civic polls Sena candidate tears, swallows form of rival; booked
What's the story
In a bizarre incident during the filing of nomination papers for the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) elections, a candidate from the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena allegedly tore and swallowed his rival's AB form. The incident took place in Ward No. 36, Sahakarnagar-Padmavati, where both Machhindra Dhawale and Uddhav Kamble were issued AB forms by their party. Dhawale submitted his AB form around 2:30pm on December 30.
Form theft
Rival candidate's form goes missing after alleged theft
When Kamble arrived to submit his nomination, he asked for details of the submitted AB form. Election officials showed him a copy from a distance, after which Kamble allegedly snatched the document and ran toward the washroom. Two minutes later, election officers discovered that the AB form was missing. A senior official alleged that Kamble swallowed the torn form to invalidate Dhawale's claim to official candidature.
Police report
Election officials report incident to police
The incident was immediately reported to the Sahakarnagar Police Station for obstructing government work and other relevant offenses. Dhawale, who claims to be the official candidate since he submitted his form first, said he submitted a Xerox copy after learning about the incident. Kamble refused to comment on the matter but accused Dhawale of stealing his AB form and claimed he was the rightful candidate, per India Today. A case has been registered against Kamble at Bharati Vidyapeeth Police Station.
Official confirmation
Nomination papers filed for all 165 PMC wards
Nomination papers were filed for all 165 PMC wards on Tuesday, and the Election Commission received 3,041 applications. The process, however, was plagued by confusion as the BJP-Shiv Sena coalition fell apart in Pune, requiring both parties to compete independently. Tensions rose after the BJP reportedly allocated only 15 seats to the Shinde-led Shiv Sena, leading the party to distribute AB forms quickly. At least six wards allegedly issued AB forms to two candidates each, prompting disagreements regarding official candidacy.