Wakad, 16th January 2026: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has registered a historic victory in Ward No. 25 of the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) elections, with Rahul Tanaji Kalate and his entire panel winning decisively. This marks the first time the BJP has secured a win in this ward.
Despite a multi-cornered contest involving the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Congress, Shiv Sena and the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray faction), Rahul Kalate successfully retained his stronghold and ensured a clean sweep for the BJPтАУRPI Mahayuti alliance. Along with Kalate, Kunal Wavhalekar, Reshma Chetan Bhujbal and Shruti Ram Wakadkar were elected, completing a full-panel victory for the BJP.
After the win, Kalate thanked Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, BJP state president Ravindra Chavan, ministers Chandrashekhar Bawankule and Chandrakant Patil for their support. He said the victory reflected the publicтАЩs trust in development and strong leadership.
тАЬThe people of Ward 25 decided to support leadership that responds to their expectations for development. Now that they have kept their word, it is our responsibility to fulfill every promise we made,тАЭ Kalate said. тАЬThis victory belongs to the people who believed in us.тАЭ
With this result, the BJP has once again come to power in the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation with a clear majority. Party leaders said the strong mandate will help accelerate the cityтАЩs development agenda.
KalateтАЩs entry into the BJP had earlier faced resistance at the local level. However, after his induction, even party workers now admit that his leadership made the panelтАЩs victory easier. Previously, Ram Wakadkar had opposed Kalate, but this time his wife Shruti Wakadkar contested on the BJP ticket and emerged victorious.
Interestingly, no senior BJP leader or MLA actively campaigned in this ward, and the responsibility of the election was largely entrusted to Kalate himself. Yet, he managed to deliver a breakthrough win for the party in a ward where the lotus had never bloomed before. He received strong local support from leaders like Navnath Dhawale, Bharti Vinode, Chetan Bhujbal and Santosh Pawar.
As in the previous election, Kalate enjoyed strong backing from IT professionals and housing societies in the area, where the BJP secured a large majority.
In a message to voters, Kalate said, тАЬThis victory is not mine alone but belongs to every citizen who stood by me in every struggle and blessed me with their support. I remain forever grateful and promise to build the Ward 25 of everyoneтАЩs dreams. I also sincerely thank the party leadership, especially Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and State President Ravindra Chavan, for the faith they placed in me.тАЭ
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