Bengal Municipal polls: TMC wins big in Bidhanagar, Asansol; Opposition cries foul
Kolkata: In a major boost to the party ahead of next year's Assembly polls, the Trinamool Congress on Saturday scored a landslide victory in the newly formed Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation, bagging 37 of the 41 wards and winning all the 16 wards in Bally Municipalty under Howarah district.
The TMC has also taken a massive lead in Asansol Municipal Corporation by leading in almost 80 wards out the 106 wards. Out of those 80 wards, TMC had already won 43 wards, officials of state election commission said.
Although the TMC hailed it as victory of the masses and people restoring their faith in the developmental work ushered by party supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, the opposition Left Front has claimed that the results reflect the strength of the TMC's 'goondaism' rather than the reflection of the people's mandate.
Elections to Asansol, Bidhannagar municipal corporations and Bally municipalty, held on October 3 was marred by rampant violence and assault on journalits with over 70 per cent people casting their votes.
CPI(M)'s mayor candidate and former state finance minister Asim Dasgupta, was among the heavyweights who lost the polls in Bidhannagar. Dasgupta alleged the result was a victory of TMC's "muscle power".
"The civic poll result in Bidhannagar is not the reflection of people's mandate. It is a reflection of the votes looted and rampant malpractices that TMC had committed on the polling day," he charged.
Leader of Opposition and CPI-M Politburo member Surya Kanta Mishra said that "in these elections, people have not cast their votes. It is the votes of the ghosts (outsiders) that helped TMC to win. It (the win) is a black spot on the face of TMC, they can't wash it away."
BJP state president Rahul Sinha alleged TMC's victory reflects how it used money and muscle power to throttle the voice of democracy. State Congress president Adhir Chowdhury too accused TMC of unleashing a reign of terror on the poll day and not allowing people to cast their votes freely.
The results have, however, thrown up brought out that CPI-M, which had receded to the third position in Bidhannagar and Asansol behind BJP in the last Lok Sabha polls, has regained much of the opposition space.
The Left party appears to be on the path of recovery following its three back-to-back political programmes in the last one month, while BJP failed to make any dent mainly due to poor organisation.
