Pimpri-Chinchwad, 31st January 2026: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has appointed senior corporator Prashant Shitole as its group leader in the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), a move that also makes him the Leader of the House as the party begins its new term with a clear majority.
The BJP won 84 seats in the recent civic elections, securing a second consecutive term of single-party dominance in the corporation. The party formally registered its municipal group at the Divisional CommissionerтАЩs office on Saturday, confirming ShitoleтАЩs appointment, according to BJP city president Shatrughan Kate.
Shitole represents Ward 32 (Sangvi Gaothan) in the Chinchwad Assembly segment and is entering his fourth term as a corporator. He was previously associated with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and had won three earlier elections from the same ward before joining the BJP ahead of the latest polls. He has also served as Chairman of the Standing Committee in the PCMC.
Considered a close associate of BJP MLA Mahesh Landge, ShitoleтАЩs elevation signals his growing influence within the partyтАЩs local leadership structure.
With the group leaderтАЩs position going to a corporator from the Chinchwad Assembly constituency, political observers believe the MayorтАЩs post could also remain within the same segment. BJP city president Shatrughan Kate, along with Rahul Kalate, Ravi Landge, and Nitin Landge, are said to be among the aspirants.
If the mayoral post is allocated to Chinchwad, a contest is expected between Kate and Kalate. Nominations for the posts of Mayor and Deputy Mayor are scheduled to be filed on Monday between 3 pm and 5 pm. Meanwhile, the Standing Committee chairmanтАЩs post is likely to go to the Bhosari Assembly segment.
NCP Yet to Decide Opposition Leader-
Attention has also turned to the Nationalist Congress Party, which will assume the role of the principal opposition in the PCMC. A recent meeting of NCP corporators, held in the presence of Ajit PawarтАЩs aide Vikas Patil, had authorized Ajit Pawar to take a final decision on the group leader.
However, following Ajit PawarтАЩs sudden demise, the decision is now expected to be made after consultations with Sunetra Pawar, Member of Parliament and his wife. Likely contenders include Sandeep Waghere, former Opposition Leader Bhausaheb Bhoir, and former Mayor Vaishali Ghodekar.
Seat Distribution in PCMC
The final party-wise tally in the PCMC stands as follows:
BJP тАУ 84 seats
NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) тАУ 37 seats
Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) тАУ 6 seats
Independent тАУ 1 seat
With a comfortable majority, the BJP is positioned to steer policy and administrative decisions in the civic body for the upcoming term.
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