Continuing its winning streak in the local body elections, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Monday won four more municipal corporations — Biddhanagar, Asansol, Chandernagore and Siliguri — that went to polls last week.
The West Bengal ruling party won the four urban local bodies with a convincing majority, sweeping close to 90% of the wards. Of the 226 wards across the four municipal corporations, the TMC won 198. The outcome of the polls to the municipal corporation across the State was similar to the results of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation held in December 2021, when TMC won 134 of the 144 wards.
Of the 41 municipal wards in Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation, located in the northern fringes of Kolkata, the TMC won 39 while the Congress and an Independent won one each. The Trinamool Congress secured 73% votes, the Left parties 10%, BJP 8% and the Congress 4%.
In the Asansol Municipal Corporation, the TMC won 91 wards, BJP seven, Congress three and Left parties two. In terms of vote percentage, the TMC registered 64% votes followed by BJP with 17% votes, the Left Parties getting 11% votes and the Congress 4% in the municipal corporation located in Paschim Bardhhaman district.
In the Siliguri Municipal Corporation in Darjeeling district, of the 47 wards, the TMC won 37, BJP five , Left Front four and Congress one. In terms of vote share, the TMC got 47%, followed by 23% for the BJP, 18% for the Left Front and 5% to the Congress. It was at the Siliguri Municipal Corporation that the Left parties and Congress came together in 2015 to keep the TMC out of power and started an electoral arrangement called the ‘Siliguri Model’. Senior CPI (M) leader and former Mayor of the Corporation Asok Bhattacharya, who is said to have brought the Left and Congress together, lost from ward number six of the municipal corporation.
At Chandernagore Municipal Corporation, located in Hooghly district, of the 32 wards, TMC won 31 and the Congress one ward. As in Bidhannagar the Left parties polled more votes than the BJP. While the TMC managed 59% of the votes, theLeft parties 26% while the BJP got 9%.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee congratulated “people of Asansol, Bidhannagar, Siliguri & Chandanagore for having put their faith and confidence in the All India Trinamool Congress candidates in the Municipal Corporation elections”. Ms. Banerjee said the victorious candidates will have to be humble and work for providing civic facilities to the people . She said that TMC leader Gautam Deb will be Mayor of Siliguri Municipal Corporation and the mayors of the other three corporations will be decided later.
The Opposition parties had alleged widespread irregularities in the polling as well as intimidation of their candidates. The State Election Commission and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, however, rejected these allegations.
The results of the polls indicate the highest ever support for the State’s ruling party which according to political observers has raised question not only about the role of Opposition parties but also about democracy in the State. In 17 wards of the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation the TMC candidates secured more than 80% votes and in one particular ward the percentage of votes polled in the favour of the ruling party was 95%.
Polls to another 108 civic bodies across 20 districts are scheduled on February 27. TMC has won three of the local bodies unopposed.
