Mill worker’s daughter is Sena’s mayor pick

For Kishori Pednekar, 56, a trained nurse and a three-term Shiv Sena corporator from Lower Parel, who is tipped to be the next mayor, making Mumbai pothole- and

For Kishori Pednekar, 56, a trained nurse and a three-term Shiv Sena corporator from Lower Parel, who is tipped to be the next mayor, making Mumbai pothole- and plastic-free is a priority.

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The Sena nominated Pednekar, seen as a loyal Sainik for the past three decades, as its mayoral candidate, on Monday. With the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) opting out and no other party putting up a candidate against the Sena, Pednekar will take over from incumbent mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar this Friday. “I thank all senior leaders, including Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, for giving me the responsibility by nominating me in the mayoral elections. I plan to take all stakeholders, including administration and corporators, together to work towards betterment of the city,” said Pednekar, as she filled her nomination form.

Daughter of a mill worker from Girangaon, Pednekar joined the Shiv Sena in 1992 and helmed the party’s women’s wing in Raigad and Sindhudurg districts. Pednekar debuted and won the civic corporation polls in 2002. Since then, she has held various positions in the BMC – a member of the improvement committee, standing committee, works, and women and child welfare committee. She also won the polls in 2012 and 2017.

Another contender was the Sena’s standing committee chairman, Yashwant Jadhav.

For the post of deputy mayor, the Sena has nominated Suhas Wadkar, 44, a first-time corporator and lawyer from Dindoshi in Goregaon. He joined the party in 2010 and contested the elections in 2017.

Wadkar is the son of former Sena corporator Chandrakant Wadkar and was the deputy shakha pramukh for seven years before contesting the elections. Wadkar told HT, “My family members and I have been associated with the Shiv Sena for decades now. I plan to obey my seniors to make the city better and safer. I gave up law four years ago to concentrate on social work through the Sena.”