MUMBAI: In the first stay in the ongoing city corporation elections in the state, Bombay HC Thursday put on hold the poll process for Ward 17A in Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) after a BJP candidate, Nilesh Bhojane, challenged the rejection of his nomination form on Dec 31, reports Swati Deshpande.A Shiv Sena candidate had filed a complaint against Bhojane’s nomination. The rejection order cited an NMMC notice to Bhojane last Feb over “alleged unauthorised commercial use” of his house.
HC observed that the case prima facie demonstrates “illegal & arbitrary exercise of powers” by the returning officer and posted the matter to Jan 9 (Friday) for final disposal.Granting urgent interim relief to BJP candidate Nilesh Bhojane, Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad, in their order, said, “We are of the prima facie opinion that there is no absolute bar (under the Constitution) to entertain a writ petition in matters like the present one, which prima facie demonstrate illegal and arbitrary exercise of powers by the Election Returning Officer.”The RO’s order cited a civic notice Bhojane got on Feb 24, 2025 to “stop alleged unauthorised commercial use” of his house in Navi Mumbai, rendering him “disqualified” under the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations (MMC) Act. The notice under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act did not specify the alleged unauthorised use, Bhojane’s petition said.Senior counsel Navroz Seervai for Bhojane argued that the disqualification, as conceived under the provision invoked to disqualify Bhojane, applied to a “sitting councillor” and not to a candidate who sought to contest an election. He said the order was illegal and ought to be quashed. The term “councillor” meant a sitting councillor, Seervai said, citing various judgments. Section 10 (1D) governs disqualification for being a councillor if involved in any illegal construction or obstructing authorities. The section was wholly inapplicable also since nothing illegal was done, Bhojane’s case said.The petition said rejection was on “flimsy grounds” and “is anathema to democracy”. It said, “A popular candidate who is likely to win an election is prevented from even contesting” on grounds bereft of merit. The petitioner challenged as “illegal and invalid” the order from the RO. Seervai, with advocates Mayur Khandeparkar and Nivit Srivastava, argued the MMC Act provision was not applicable to Bhojane.Bhojane, also a lawyer, said that, under the Unified Development Control and Promotion Regulations for Maharashtra, professional practice by oneself is permissible in any building in a purely residential zone. He added he was shown no material NMMC relied on to keep him out of the polls. Senior counsel A Y Sakhare for Patkar said the petition was not maintainable.Sachin Shetye, counsel for State Election Commission, stated Bhojane could not be included in the list of validly nominated candidates.
