24 December,2025 08:23 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
The poll campaign will end at 5.30 pm on January 13 said SEC Dinesh Waghmare. File pic
All election-related advertisements across electronic, print and other media will be prohibited after the end of the official campaign period for the upcoming municipal corporation elections in Maharashtra, news agency PTI reported, quoting a senior election official.
Polling for 29 civic bodies in the state is scheduled to be held on January 15, 2026, with counting of votes slated for the following day.
"The poll campaign will end at 5.30 pm on January 13, and no election advertisements can be published or broadcast in any media thereafter," State Election Commissioner (SEC) Dinesh Waghmare said on Wednesday, while addressing a meeting of representatives of recognised political parties.
He added that polling will be conducted from 7.30 am to 5.30 pm. As per the provisions of the relevant law, the campaign period ends 48 hours before the close of polling, that is, at 5.30 pm on January 13.
According to a release issued by the State Election Commission, the question of pre-certification or permission for print media advertisements does not arise after the campaign deadline.
The release said detailed guidelines are contained in the State Election Commission's order dated October 9, 2025, titled âMedia Monitoring and Advertisement Certification Order for Election Purposes, 2025'.
State Election Commission Secretary Suresh Kakani made a detailed presentation during the meeting. He said a candidate's name must be included in the voters' list of the concerned municipal corporation, while the proposer and seconder must belong to the same ward from which the candidate is contesting.
Kakani said both party candidates and independents require one proposer and one seconder each. He added that a candidate may file nomination papers from more than one ward, but can contest only one seat.
A maximum of four nomination papers can be filed for a single seat, he said.
The Maharashtra Cabinet on Wednesday decided to promulgate an ordinance to amend an existing law to grant membership and voting rights to directly elected presidents of municipal councils and nagar panchayats, PTI reported.
The Maharashtra Municipal Councils, Nagar Panchayats and Industrial Townships Act, 1965, will be amended to enable directly elected presidents to become members of their respective municipal bodies, according to a statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office.
Under the amendment, the presidents will be entitled to cast one vote as a member, PTI reported. In the event of a tie during voting, the president will exercise a casting vote, the statement said.
The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and aims to recognise the public mandate received by directly elected presidents and strengthen their role in municipal governance.
The cabinet also approved the free allocation of one acre of land belonging to the Dairy Development Department in Dharashiv city for the installation of a statue of social reformer and folk poet Lokshahir Annabhau Sathe.
(With PTI inputs)
