The Trinamool Congress (TMC) continued its political dominance in West Bengal by winning four of the seven civic bodies that went to the polls on May 14.
The ruling party not only swept Domkal, Raiganj and Pujal in the plains, but also won the Mirik Notified Area in the Darjeeling hills. This is the first time in the last three decades that a political party from the plains has been able to snatch victory from the hill parties that have dominated the political scene in the hills.
Of the nine wards in Mirik, TMC won six wards and the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) three.
The GJM won three other civic bodies in the hills of Darjeeling, Kurseong and Kalimpong.
Neither the BJP nor the Left Front and Congress combine was able to put up any resistance to the TMC in the polls. Interestingly, a Congress councillor, after winning the Domkal Municipality, switched sides and joined the TMC soon after results were announced.
Allegations of irregularities and violence in Domkal, Raiganj and Pujali were raised by the Opposition. The Congress has approached the Calcutta High Court seeking the cancellation of the elections in the three civic bodies.
