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Ahead of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Saturday said that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) would have given a ticket to Dawood Ibrahim's relatives if they had met with him.
While addressing a public rally here, he said that the Mahayuti can't win elections without hooliganism. Raut argued that Pune, once known for its beauty, is known as a "city of goons". "Pune was once a very beautiful city, but today it is known as a city of goons. Whether it is the BJP or Ajit Pawar's party, there is hardly any gang whose relatives have not been given election tickets by these parties. I once said that if these people had met Dawood, they would have given tickets to his brother or relatives, including Chhota Shakeel and Chhota Rajan. These people cannot win elections without hooliganism," Raut said. Meanwhile, the NCP (SP) and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP on Saturday jointly released a manifesto for the PMC elections, promising a major push for traffic relief, healthcare, water supply, and affordable public transport. The two rival factions of the NCP came into an alliance for the PMC election and projected a united development agenda for Pune, despite their political differences at the state and national levels. The manifesto promises to fix 33 missing road links across the city to reduce congestion, widen key roads and improve overall traffic flow. The parties said strengthening public transport would be a priority, including a proposal for free travel on buses and the metro, inspired by European cities. With Pune having nearly 30 lakh vehicles, the leaders claimed that traffic jams cost Rs 750 crore in fuel and citizens' time every year. They argued that better public transport could significantly reduce this economic loss and pollution. Supriya Sule said the alliance had a proven record of delivering schools and civic infrastructure even while in opposition and pledged to resolve Pune's traffic, water and public transport challenges. Notably, this was the first time Ajit Pawar and Supriya Sule shared the stage since the NCP split in 2023. The State Election Commission in Maharashtra has announced elections to 29 municipal corporations across the state, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), PMC and the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC). Polling will be held on January 15, with counting scheduled for January 16. (ANI)
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