Female Candidate With 4 Children Allowed To Contest In Nagpur Municipal Corporation Polls
As per the law, a candidate with more than two children cannot contest Municipal Corporation elections in Maharashtra.
Published : January 10, 2026 at 5:47 PM IST
By Dhananjay Tiple
Nagpur: In a shocking case, the nomination papers of a female candidate with four children were accepted by the election officers for the Nagpur Municipal Corporation elections.
The nomination form of Pushpa Mukesh Waghmare, a candidate from the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar), was accepted in Ward No. 36, in South-West Nagpur. Since her candidature was accepted, Pushpa has been actively campaigning as she claimed she was not aware of the election regulations.
In 1995, the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations and Municipal Councils, Nagar Panchayats and Industrial Townships (Second Amendment) Act was implemented, stating, a candidate with more than two children cannot contest these elections.
Despite having four children, Pushpa's application was deemed valid in the municipal elections. Her rival, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Shivani Dani, stated, they have been vigorously campaigning against Pushpa and this truth about her.
"We have increased our campaign against this breach of rules and are creating awareness about her status. Waghmare's presence won't affect our results as she is not likely to get many votes," said Dani.
This colossal negligence by the officers in that zone has raised doubts over the entire scrutiny process, said members of the opposition.
After they raised objections, Nagpur Municipal Commissioner and Chief Returning Officer Abhijit Chaudhary told ETV Bharat, "The officers who accepted Pushpa Waghmare's nomination form in this instance have been asked to provide an explanation."
However, Chaudhary clarified, the returning officers do not have the jurisdiction to take further action in this case under the regulations, and the opposition members will need to move the court for any action.
Shivani has not ruled out moving to the courts. She declared that if the party gives her the order, she will pursue legal action.
According to Pushpa, she should have been guided properly as per the regulations by her party members. "I submitted all the details about my four children in the affidavit. In fact, two of my children were born after September 12, 2001. Had I been given the right advice, I would not have submitted my nomination form," said Pushpa.
Pushpa added if there were discrepancies, then the officers should have rejected her form. "The officer should have rejected my form during the scrutiny process itself, in accordance with the regulations. My candidacy is legitimate, and I will contest the elections," Pushpa said.
The deadline for scrutinising the forms or to withdraw the applications was on January 2, 2026, and on January 6, 2026, the affidavits of all qualified candidates were posted on the Election Commission of India's website. After the deadline, members of the opposition parties could not object to the candidature of Pushpa.
Shivani and the other members of the opposition parties have lamented that their votes will be divided since Pushpa's application has been deemed legitimate.
A Previous Case
In 2011, the nomination of Gulshan Chouhan, a corporator from South Mumbai, was disqualified for having four children. While a corporator cannot have more than two biological children, there is no cap on adopted children. Gulshan's husband had argued in court that two of their four children had been adopted by the candidate’s sister, thus making her a parent of only two children.
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