Young Edge | 68 seats, zero votes: Why Maharashtra’s uncontested election wins in civic bodies are alarming Pune’s young voters

Ahead of the January 15 municipal corporation elections in Maharashtra, 68 candidates have been declared winners unopposed following mass withdrawals of rival nominations. Most of these victories are concentrated in cities such as Pune, Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation, and Jalgaon. However, on the ground, for many young people in Pune, who were potentially meant to enter local democracy for the first time, the unopposed wins in Maharashtra seemed like the disappearance of choice.

For a large section of the city’s youth, these municipal elections, being held after years of administrative vacuum, carry unusual weight; they mark the first time many young voters will engage with local self-government. Municipal bodies directly govern the issues faced by young residents, such as traffic congestion, public transport, basic utilities, neighbourhood infrastructure, and the availability of open and accessible public spaces. When polling does not take place, participation itself appears symbolic.

Aryan Rakhe, a Pune resident who studies at Government Law College, Mumbai, points to structural issues shaping these outcomes. “In my hometown, more particularly the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), there is this unusual alliance politics which is messing with the process. There are families with decades of consolidated power, making it abundantly clear that they are under the hegemony of one party alone, leading to a lack of choice,” he says.

Rakhe also highlights how these withdrawals shape public trust. “These incidents lead to erosion of trust in the institution of the corporations, if not the state as a whole,” he points out. “Because in the process of these withdrawals, when the average voter sees that they have no real choice, they disengage with the electoral process,” Rakhe says.

He underscores the inconvenience caused by “widespread violations of the model code of conduct” in some wards, which is visible in the form of posters, billboards, and active campaigning.

From university spaces, student groups in Pune echo this concern. Aadi Sardesai, president of the Constitutional and Electoral Literacy Club (CELC) at FLAME University, describes the situation as part of a broader democratic fatigue.

“The problem with the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) elections at large is the wide-scale apathy,” he says. “This is just an extension of the ongoing assault on democracy, and our lack of collective outrage further strengthens it,” Sardesai says.

He is particularly critical of how unopposed wins are being received. “It is extremely disheartening to see that in one of India’s biggest cities, when a massive chunk of seats is won unopposed, the news is being celebrated instead of critically evaluated. We cannot celebrate the killing of our tremendously hard-fought processes lest we lose them altogether,” Sardesai says.

Municipal elections, with their smaller constituencies and localised campaigns, are often the most realistic entry point into politics for young people, whether through party structures or as independents known within their communities. When seats go uncontested, the pathway for political engagement narrows.

So, at one end of the spectrum lies disengagement rooted not in cynicism, but in distance. An 18-year-old BBA student, who doesn’t wish to be named, admits, “I have only heard about these elections because someone in my class mentioned that they are imminent, though this topic was only glossed over.” She adds, “Most of us keep up with national or international politics, but local body elections just don’t get as much coverage.”

Together, these voices reflect a serious challenge that has specific and tangible consequences for the younger population. When elections conclude without contest, young people are not merely deprived of a vote; they are also distanced from the very idea that local democracy is meant to be participatory, open, and worth investing in.