Shirur Municipal Council’s political balance is set for a decisive test as councillors prepare to vote on a no-confidence motion against Deputy Mayor Mitesh Gadiya at a special meeting scheduled for Friday. The motion could determine whether the existing coalition survives and whether the council’s governing arrangement changes.
Gadiya, who belongs to the Sharadchandra Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party, has been facing the motion after the faction withdrew its support from the Ajit Pawar faction. The development follows allegations that councillors from the Sharad Pawar group were being treated unfairly in the allocation of funds for development works and were not receiving due respect, according to the report.
The council’s political structure had already been unusual. The Bharatiya Janata Party has the largest representation with 11 councillors, but both Nationalist Congress Party factions joined hands around 10 months ago to form the administration. The BJP was consequently left on the opposition benches despite having the highest number of councillors.
The balance began changing after BJP councillors extended support to Municipal Council President Aishwarya Pacharne two days before the special meeting. The BJP and the Ajit Pawar faction subsequently submitted a letter to the president seeking action against Gadiya through a no-confidence motion.
The vote will establish whether the motion receives the required approval and whether Gadiya retains his post. It could also indicate whether the BJP and the Ajit Pawar faction are moving towards a new working arrangement within the council. The supplied report does not specify the strength of the groups supporting or opposing the motion, or the precise voting threshold required for its passage.
The developments have also exposed different political alignments across local institutions. In the taluka’s market committee politics, the BJP is reportedly seen as moving closer to former MLA Ashok Pawar of the Sharadchandra Pawar faction. In the municipal council, however, the BJP is supporting the Ajit Pawar faction against Ashok Pawar’s group. The contrasting alignments have become a subject of discussion in the local political circle.
The role of industrialist Prakash Dhariwal is also being discussed locally. The report says councillors across parties respect him and that he had reportedly supported Gadiya’s appointment as deputy mayor when the council administration was formed. The report does not establish whether Dhariwal has taken a position on the current motion.
The special meeting will provide the next formal decision point in the council’s political dispute. Its outcome will determine whether Gadiya continues as deputy mayor and whether the coalition that formed the administration around 10 months ago remains in place.
