Nanded, Aug 11: Forty-four candidates who contested the 2025 elections to municipal councils and a nagar panchayat in Nanded district have been disqualified from holding municipal office for three years for failing to submit their election expenditure accounts within the prescribed period, officials said on Tuesday.
Legal basis and timeline
The disqualifications have been issued under Section 16(1-D) of the Maharashtra Municipal Councils, Nagar Panchayats and Industrial Townships Act, 1965. According to official orders issued on July 27, 2026, the names of the affected candidates were later published in the Maharashtra Government Gazette on August 5, 2026, sources said.
Where the disqualified candidates contested
Officials said the action follows the 2025 local body polls for 12 municipal councils and one nagar panchayat in the district. The district administration and returning officers had given candidates a specific window to submit detailed accounts of election expenditure, a statutory requirement.
- Total disqualified: 44 candidates
- Penalty: Ineligibility to contest or become municipal members for three years
- Legal provision invoked: Section 16(1-D) of the Maharashtra Municipal Councils, Nagar Panchayats and Industrial Townships Act, 1965
Distribution by local body, as reported by officials, is shown below:
| Local Body | Number of Disqualified Candidates |
|---|---|
| Umri Municipal Council | 6 |
| Bhokar Municipal Council | 2 |
| Loha Municipal Council | 1 |
| Himayatnagar Nagar Panchayat | 14 |
| Dharmabad Municipal Council | 6 |
| Kinwat Municipal Council | 7 |
| Mukhed Municipal Council | 3 |
| Kandhar Municipal Council | 5 |
Officials stress statutory obligation
District election authorities reiterated that submission of election expenditure accounts within the stipulated time is a legal obligation and that failure to comply renders a candidate liable for disqualification under the Act. The orders, carried out after the deadline lapsed, are administrative and statutory measures to enforce transparency in poll financing, officials said.
"Submission of election expenditure accounts within the prescribed time is a legal obligation of every candidate and failure to comply can result in disqualification under the law," officials were quoted as saying in a PTI report.
The action affects representatives in municipal bodies that handle local services such as water supply, street lighting, sanitation and licensing — functions that directly impact citizens in their daily lives across talukas such as Umri, Dharmabad, Kinwat, Mukhed and Kandhar. With the disqualifications in place, those who were declared elected but fall under the orders will be ineligible to hold municipal office during the three-year period of disqualification.
Local political observers in Nanded noted that such disqualifications can prompt by-elections or administrative adjustments depending on the status of each seat and whether the affected persons had already taken office. The government gazette notification serves as the formal public record that triggers enforcement of the penalty.
For voters in affected towns and villages — from Himayatnagar's wards to polling booths in Bhokar and Loha — the development raises questions about compliance and transparency in local contests. Authorities said they will continue to monitor filings and enforce provisions of the municipal Act to ensure adherence to electoral finance rules.
Reports on the disqualifications were carried by the national news agency; the district administration has not released a separate detailed public list beyond the gazette publication, officials added.
(Reporting from Nanded)
