Akola: The Akola Bar Association has elected Ajay Waghmare as its president for the 2026-27 term. Waghmare secured 682 votes, edging past rival Hemsingh Mohta, who polled 633 votes, to win by a narrow margin of 49 votes. A total of six votes were declared invalid in the presidential race.The election was held on the court premises in Akola on Friday. With this victory, Waghmare returns to the post he had held earlier as well, triggering celebrations among his supporters within the court campus. Nomination of Sanjay Deshmukh was withdrawn ahead of polling as per the directions of the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa. Since his name had appeared on the voters’ list, he received 11 votes, which were subsequently excluded from the final count.In the women’s vice-president election, Sheetal Gawai emerged victorious with 552 votes. She was followed by Sharda Malhotra (378), Manju Sawarkar (163), Nirmala Nagdeve (152) and Sangeeta Gavande (76). This section recorded 11 invalid votes.Vijay Bhambere won the election for the men’s vice-president post, with 675 votes. Rahul Wankhade polled 375 votes, while Sumedh Dongardive received 264 votes.Pramod Korde was elected joint secretary with 700 votes, winning by a margin of 203 votes. Akash Bhagat secured 497 votes and Pavanesh Agrawal 121 votes. This segment recorded 14 invalid votes. Newly-elected office-bearers are expected to focus on strengthening professional discipline, addressing members’ grievances and ensuring smoother coordination of court-related work.A total of 1,332 members exercised their franchise in the election, which was conducted peacefully throughout the day. After the completion of counting in the evening, election returning officer Uday Naik formally declared the results.
