Maharashtra SEC likely to announce civic poll schedule today

The Maharashtra State Election Commission SEC is expected to announce the schedule for local body elections soon including polls for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC and 28 other municipal corporations The municipal corporation elections are likely to be conducted in January 2026State Election Commissioner Dinesh Waghmare will brief the media in Mumbai at 4 pm regarding the upcoming local body polls The press conference will take place at the Secretariat Gymkhana opposite Mantralaya in south MumbaiAccording to officials in the State Election Commission the polls may be held in three phases The first phase is expected to cover 246 nagar palikas and 42 nagar panchayats followed by elections to zilla parishads in the second phase The third phase is likely to include polls for 29 municipal corporations and municipal councils Officials however cautioned that the final sequence may change and the exact schedule will only be confirmed once officially announcedThe briefing is expected to outline preparations and key updates for elections to municipal corporations municipal councils and nagar panchayats mdash one of the most significant electoral exercises in MaharashtraThe Supreme Court has set a final deadline of January 31 2026 for conducting the local body elections including those for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC and other major civic bodies During a hearing the apex court criticised the SEC for failing to adhere to earlier timelines and directed that polls for all local bodies zilla parishads and panchayat samitis be completed by the deadlineLocal body elections have been delayed since 2022 due to litigation over reservation for Other Backward Classes OBCsKey municipal corporations awaiting elections include Mumbai Thane Navi Mumbai VasaiVirar MiraBhayandar KalyanDombivli and Nashik Mumbai last held civic polls in February 2017 and the fiveyear term ended in 2022The SEC recently sought more time to conduct the polls citing issues such as nonavailability of school premises shortage of staff and inadequate supply of electronic voting machines EVMs The Supreme Court however rejected the requestWith the courtrsquos deadline in place the commission is now expected to accelerate preparations for elections to 29 municipal corporations 290 municipal councils district councils and panchayat samitis Momentum is likely to build once the official poll schedule is announcedMeanwhile the Maharashtra State Election Commission SEC had earlier said that the lottery to determine ward reservations for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC polls will be held on November 11The poll body said the lottery result will be submitted to the SEC for approvalElections to 29 civic bodies in the state including the cashrich 227member BMC are to be completed by January 2026Citizens will be allowed to submit objections and suggestions to the ward reservations between November 14 and 20 The BMC commissioner will hear the objections and suggestions received between November 21 and 27 and take the final decisionThe final list of ward reservations will be published on November 28 the SEC saidThe number of reserved wards will be finalised and submitted to the SEC between October 30 and November 3 The notification for the lottery for ward reservation will be published on November 6 the poll body said