NGOs denied representation in ward committees

PUNE: In what could be construed as blatant abuse of the selection powers entrusted with them, the PMC corporators on Friday denied any representation to non-government organisations (NGOs) on divisional ward committees.
Not a single non-political civic activist was elected on the committees. This, despite the fact that 42 posts on the 14 panels — three per panel — were strictly reserved for NGO representatives.
As expected, all political parties issued orders to their corporators asking them to vote for party workers who were contesting the polls in the guise of NGO members.The Congress party even issued a whip to its corporators asking them to vote for “civic activists� belonging to the Pune Netra Seva Pratisthan. Officially, leaders of all political parties maintained that all the 42 persons elected are “civic activists� belonging to non-political social groups or NGOs.
However, some of them on condition of anonymity admitted that the ruling Congress won 18 of the 42 posts, the BJP won 11, the Shiv Sena seven, the Hadapsar Vikas Aghadi two and the NCP-RPI combine two. The Nitin Jagtap-led NCP’s rebel group and the Milind Ekbote-led rebel group of the BJP bagged a seat each. Chief among the non-political civic activists who lost the polls are D.V. Rao, Saru Sanghvi and Surendra Kaushik of the National Society for Clean Cities and Homi Kanga of Nagrik Chetana Manch, who were contesting for a post on the Aundh panel.
The three NGO posts on the Aundh committee went to the Pune Netra Seva Pratisthan run by Congress corporator Satish Desai. Former Congress corporator Lata Shewale, Dnyaneshwar Ovhal and Yashwant Kumbhar were elected on the Aundh panel. None of the 42 candidates fielded by the Nanasaheb Parulekar Sakal Charity Trust were elected.