Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) general body Once again it will be dominated by the “gaonwallahs” or sons of the soil, since of the 128 elected corporations, almost a hundred have remained in the area for decades and come from families with strong local roots.
Among them, the Barnes, who mainly hail from the Thergaon area, stood out on top. Six corporations with the surname Barne have arrived at the PCMC House. The Kates of Dapodi and Pimple Saudagar have five corporations. The Jagtaps also have five corporations, but one of them is non-indigenous. The Landges of Kasarwadi and Bhosari will have four corporations, while the Kalates of Wakad will have two. The Kadams will have three corporations.
The six Barne corporators hail from the adjoining districts of Thergaon Gaonthan-Sainathnagar, Samarth Colony, Duttnagar, Mhatobanagar and Gujarnagar. Of them, two corporators are from the BJP, two from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and two from the Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde.
In Prabhag Number 23, Tanaji Barne (BJP) defeated Vishal Barne (NCP) by over 1,700 votes. In the same seat, Santosh Barne (Shiv Sena) polled 2,389 votes, Yogita Barne (NCP) defeated Sonali Gade (BJP) by over 400 votes and Abhishek Barne (BJP) defeated Pravin Barne (NCP) by over 3,000 votes.
In the adjoining Prabhag Number 24, Vishhwajit Barne (Shiv Sena), son of Maval MP Shrirang Barne, defeated Siddheshwar Barne (BJP) by over 3,000 votes. In Prabhag itself, Maya Barne (NCP) defeated BJP-backed independent candidate Karishma Barne by over 1,000 votes. Shrirang’s nephew Nilesh Barne (Shiv Sena) defeated Ganesh Gujar, a BJP-backed independent candidate, by nearly 8,000 votes.
“I was confident that my son would win… He has been working for the Sena for the last few years. He heads the Sena’s youth wing in western Maharashtra,” MP Shrirang Barne said.
The Kates will have five corporations in the PCMC House. Swati Kate (NCP) defeated BJP’s Pratibha Jawalkar in Dapodi-Kasarwadi, Prabhag No 30, by over 5,000 votes. In the same Prabhag, former corporator Rohit Kate (NCP) lost to Sanjay Kate (BJP) by nearly 2,000 votes.
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In Pimple Saudagar, Prabhag’s number 28, former corporator Nana Kate (NCP), was re-elected by defeating Sandesh Kate (BJP) by a margin of over 6,000 votes. Shatrughan Kate, president of the Pimpri-Chinchwad BJP unit, was re-elected by Prabhag himself. He defeated Umesh Kate (NCP) by more than 7,500 votes. Anita Kate (BJP) defeated Sheetal Kate (NCP) by a margin of over 1,500 votes in the same Prabhag. Sheetal is Nana Kate’s wife and has been corporate twice.
Four businessmen named Jagtap have been elected to the PCMC. Among them is Varsha Jagtap (NCP), a corporator first elected from Kasarwadi-Sant Tukaram Nagar Prabhag after defeating former corporator Sujata Palande (BJP) by over 2,000 votes.
Shyam Jagtap (BJP) secured victory over Tanaji Jawalkar (NCP) in Pimple Gurav-Sudarshan Nagar, Prabhag No 29, with a margin of around 4,000 votes.
In Prabhag No 31, Rajiv Gandhi Nagar, Dnyaneshwar Jagtap (BJP) defeated Rajendra Jagtap (NCP) by over 1,500 votes. In the same Prabhag, Pallavi Jagtap (BJP) defeated Uma Paddalu (NCP) by more than 5,500 votes, while Navnath Jagtap (BJP) decisively defeated Arun Pawar (NCP) with a margin of more than 10,000 votes.
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The PCMC House will see four corporators with the surname Landge, a prominent family from Bhosari and Kasarwadi areas. While Ravi Landge (BJP) was elected unopposed from Prabhag Number 6 of Dhavadevasti (Bhosari), Rajashree Landge (BJP) defeated Priyanka Lande (NCP) by nearly 2,500 votes, and Yogesh Landge (BJP) defeated Santosh Landge (NCP) by over 2,000 votes in the same Prabhag. In Bhosari Gaonthan, Prabhag No. 7, Nitin Landge (BJP) defeated Amol Dolas (NCP) by over 1,500 votes.
Rahul Kalate won against Wakad. The Kalates have been winning since 1986.
The Kalates, another prominent family of Pimpri-Chinchwad, will have two corporators at PCMC House. Rahul Kalate (BJP) won from Wakad, Prabhag No 24, defeating Mayur Kalate (NCP) by nearly 15,000 votes. Sneha Kalate (BJP) defeated Seema Sathe (NCP-SP) in Pimple Nilakh, Prabhag No 26, with a margin of over 14,000 votes.
“My family has been representing Wakad area since 1986. My father, Tanaji Kalate, was first elected from Wakad, followed by my mother and other close relatives who also represented Wakad in the PCMC House,” Rahul Kalate told The indian express On Wednesday.
The Wagheres will have only one representative in the PCMC House this time, Sandeep Waghere, compared to at least two in previous terms. Usha Waghere, former chairperson of the Standing Committee, lost to Pimprigaon. She had previously served three terms as a corporation and had also been mayor of Pimpri-Chinchwad. Her husband, Sanjog Waghere, was elected four times and her father-in-law, Bhiku Waghere-Patil, was also elected once from Pimprigaon, reflecting the family’s dominance in civic politics.
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‘The Gaonwallahs have always had the advantage’
Other ‘sons of the soil’ with representation in the PCMC House include Bhoir, Kute, Tapkir, Sane, Chinchwade, Taras, Borhade, Bhalekar, Lande and Londhe, each with two corporations. The Phuge, Pathare, Gavhane, Gawli, Saste, Waghere, Kudale, Kalbhor, Kaspate, Kalte, Kokane, Tamhane, More, Devkar, Katale, Borate, Jadhav, Masulkar, Shinde, Ghule, Gaikwad, Gawde, Walhekar, Bhujbal, Wakadkar, Jawalkar, Bhise, Choundhe, Gujar, Dhore, The Shitole families, Nade and Newale will each have a corporation.
“The sons of the soil have always dominated the PCMC and PCMC House elections. Since 1986, when the first elections were held, till 2026, the gaonwallahs have always had the upper hand. In the city’s population of around 30 lakh, the natives must be between 1 lakh and 1.5 lakh, but they have dominated Pimpri-Chinchwad politics for years,” said political analyst Avinash Chilekar.
“Of the 128 corporators, around 100 are native, and many are related to each other. Twenty-three belong to the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe categories, while five belong to the Other Backward Classes category,” he added.
The Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Council was created in 1978 and became a municipal corporation in 1982. The first general elections were held in 1986. The Congress single-handedly dominated the first three elections, after which the NCP reigned. The BJP first came to power in 2017 and now in 2026, a landslide victory both times.