The elections to seven civic bodies in West Bengal on Sunday will be a litmus test for all major political contenders, more so for the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). There are 148 wards in the seven municipalities.
Polls will be held in four municipalities in the northern Bengal hills -- Darjeeling, Kurseong and Mirik Notified Area Authority in Darjeeling district and Kalimpong in the newly formed Kalimpong district.
Other than the four hill civic bodies, Raiganj municipality in North Dinajpur district, Domkal in Murshidabad district and Pujali in South 24 Parganas district will also go for hustings on Sunday.
The battle for the civic bodies in the hills is primarily between the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) and the Trinamool Congress. In an attempt to break the GJM hegemony, the TMC has tied up with the Gorkha National Liberation Front.
Former GJM MLA Harka Bahadur Chetri’s Jan Andolan Party is also a contender in the hills.
The GJM has accused the state government of not providing necessary funds for the development of the hills and the campaign by the hill party has touched on the issue of Gorkhaland.
The TMC, on the other hand, is confident that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee repeated visit to the hills will be able to swing votes in its favour.
The elections are also an opportunity for the Left Front and the Congress to revive their fortunes. Polls held earlier have shown that they are losing ground to the BJP.
TMC challenge
The TMC will pose a challenge to the Left and the Congress in civic bodies in central Bengal such as Domkal in Murshidabad.
Murshidabad is one of the last few strongholds of the Congress. State Congress chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury accused the TMC of using the administration to slap false cases and arrest his party leaders.
The LF and the Congress have come together with an unofficial seat understanding in Raiganj and Pujali. The BJP, keen on replacing the Left and the Congress as the main Opposition party in the State, has fielded several Muslim candidates in Domkal and Pujali, that has Muslim majority population.
