SEC defers ZP polls to Feb 7 amid campaign pause in view of Ajit Pawar’s demise

Pune/Kolhapur: The State Election Commission (SEC) on Thursday rescheduled polling for 12 zilla parishads and 125 panchayat samitis across the state to Feb 7 from the earlier Feb 5 schedule, following the death of deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar in a plane crash in Baramati on Wednesday morning. The counting of votes has also been deferred from Feb 7 to Feb 9.The rescheduling comes amid NCP's plan to approach SEC seeking postponement of the elections following Pawar's death. Party leaders said electioneering had come to a complete halt after the tragedy, leaving only three to four effective days for campaigning once the mourning period ended.A senior NCP member told TOI that resuming campaign activity immediately after the loss of a leader of Pawar's stature was extremely challenging. "The cadre is devastated. There is neither emotional nor organisational readiness to campaign. Ajit Pawar was scheduled to address several rallies in Baramati on Wednesday, and an extensive campaign plan involving star campaigners had been finalised for the districts going to polls," the politician said. The two-day extension was, however, "not very encouraging", the politician said.The zilla parishad and panchayat samiti elections are being held in 12 districts — five in the Pune division, three in the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar division and four in the Raigad division.In Kabnur village of Hatkanangle tehsil in Kolhapur district, a scheduled corner meeting of a political party was converted into a shok sabha, with party workers and residents gathering to mourn the demise of Pawar. In Sangli district's Renapur, a BJP rally was called off and concluded with the formal introduction of candidates, followed by two minutes of silence in tribute to Pawar.Later in the afternoon, leaders of all political parties in Sangli district jointly decided to suspend campaigning. The pause continued through Thursday as several local leaders, particularly from NCP, NCP (SP) and Congress, travelled to Baramati to attend the Pawar's funeral."We are aware that there is very little time left for the campaign. We will resume only low-key campaigning for a day or two in keeping with the state mourning," Jyoti Patil, BJP candidate from Vategaon in Sangli district, said.Senior politicians across parties also cancelled their scheduled rallies. CM Devendra Fadnavis was slated to launch the ZP election campaign from the Konkan region on Monday, followed by rallies in Solapur, Sangli, Satara and Kolhapur, but all were called off. Deputy CM Eknath Shinde, who had already addressed rallies for Shiv Sena in Satara, postponed his subsequent programmes. Padmakar Jagdale, NCP Sangli city president, said two rallies were arranged for Ajit Pawar —one in Miraj and another in Tasgaon. "Now, we are not in a mental state to step out and ask for votes. This election will be held without the usual intensity of campaigning," he said.Following Ajit Pawar's demise on Wednesday morning, several villages observed voluntary bandh, with residents gathering to pay floral tributes amid huge hoardings in memory of the late leader. In Nashik district, several Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs) and local markets remained shut on Thursday.In Yeola tehsil, traders voluntarily shut their establishments, and the Yeola APMC also remained closed as a mark of respect to the late politician. Similar closures were reported from various parts of Ahilyanagar district.Activists in Nashik city also paid homage to Ajit Pawar in Tapovan, a site at the centre of a controversy over Nashik Municipal Corporation's proposal to fell trees for developing a Sadhugram ahead of the Kumbh Mela. Activists recalled Ajit Pawar's firm opposition to the tree-cutting plan and paid floral tributes in recognition of his support.In Beed too, shops remained closed on Wednesday as a tribute to Ajit Pawar, with some resuming their operations on Thursday. Barring sporadic events, the campaigning for ZP polls in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and other districts from the region came to standstill on Thursday with many leaders reaching Baramati in Pune to attend the last rites of Pawar.(With inputs from Tushar Pawar in Nashik & Prasad Joshi in Sambhajinagar)