MLC wins unopposed; corporators seek relaxation in code of conduct to speed up pre-monsoon work

Pune: Elected members across party lines on Thursday demanded that the district administration and the PMC revoke the model code of conduct (MCC) currently in place for the state legislative council election.The members argued that critical pre-monsoon maintenance was suffering due to the restrictions and urged the administration to grant an immediate relaxation. The demand comes following the news that Mahayuti candidate Vikram Kakade has been elected unopposed.“The voting for this poll will no longer take place because the candidate was elected unopposed. Therefore, the code of conduct is no longer relevant. Revoking it immediately will allow us to speed up essential works such as nullah cleaning and desilting of stormwater drains,” said Nilesh Nikam, leader of opposition in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC).Nikam added that beyond monsoon preparedness, several infrastructure projects must be completed urgently to facilitate the upcoming Palkhi procession.The urgency of the situation led to a heated standing committee meeting on Thursday, which was intended to discuss these pre-monsoon efforts. However, the meeting was abruptly adjourned after corporators protested the absence of senior civic officials. Shrianth Bhimle, chairman of the standing committee, expressed his frustration, stating, “Despite clear instructions from the commissioner’s office to attend, many officials skipped the meeting.”According to PMC officials, the civic body had approached the State Election Commission (SEC) and other authorities to request a revocation of the MCC before nominations were even filed, but the request was denied at the time.“Following Thursday’s development, which confirms that no voting will be held, we will approach the authorities once again to seek relief,” a senior PMC official said.