TMC sweeps municipal polls with 12 triumphs

Some of Left leaders say results would have been different had polls been free and fair

The Trinamool Congress continued its winning streak in West Bengal by bagging eight of the 12 municipal bodies, where elections were held.

The Trinamool Congress has won in the munipalities of Balurghat, Bardhaman, Gushkhara, Dugrajpur, Panihati, Habra, Diamond Harbour and Chakdah. In Bardhaman, Chakdah and Balurghat, the Left had been ruling for more than three decades.

However, if the TMC stayed on the course of victory with the municipal elections, the Left continued to brave defeat. The Left has won only Mekhiliganj while Congress bagged two wins—Haldibari and Dalkhola.

Some of the Left leaders said that the results would have been different had the polls been free and fair. The Left Front had withdrawn candidates from Bardhaman and Chakdah municipal elections, citing violence and intimidation by the ruling TMC.

Soon after the results were announced, Trinamool Congress chief, Mamata Banerjee, said, today’s victory would be celebrated on November 25, at the Brigade Parada group. “It is a victory for the people. We have got 70% votes, others have got 30%. This will encourage us to work more for the people,” she said.

This is the third consecutive major victory for the TMC, after the panchayat and assembly elections.