TMC sweeps by-polls in WB, Mamata dubs it 'people's revolt'

Under the shadow of demonetisation, the ruling Trinamool Congress today swept the by-poll in West Bengal, winning two Lok Sabha and an Assembly seat with party supremo Mamata Banerjee dubbing it as "people's revolt" against the Centre's decision to scrap the high-denomination notes.

TMC candidate Dibyendu Adhikari won Tamluk Lok Sabha seat defeating his nearest CPI(M) rival Mandira Panda by 4.97 lakh votes, up from 2.5 lakh votes in 2014.

The CPI(M) candidate's votes has been reduced to 2.82 lakhs from 4.7 lakhs in 2014.

BJP, on the other hand, secured 1.9 lakh votes, up from 86,000 votes the party got in the last Lok Sabha polls.
 

TMC not only managed a resounding victory but also manged to win all the seven Assembly segments, including Haldia under Tamluk Lok Sabha constituency. The party had lost the Haldia seat in the Assembly poll earlier this year.

The party also won the Coochbehar Lok Sabha seat with its candidate Parthapratim Roy drubbing his nearest rival BJP's Hemchandra Burman by a margin of 4.9 lakh votes.

Roy increased the party's victory margin from 38,000 in 2014 to 4.9 lakhs.

Although BJP lost the by-poll, the party finished second in Coochbehar, securing 3.7 lakh votes compared to 2.1 lakh votes it had secured in 2014, thus pushing the candidate of Forward Bloc, a Left Front partner to the third position. The FB candidate managed to get just over 86,000 votes as against 4.8 lakh votes it bagged in 2014 Lok Sabha election.

TMC put up a creditable performance in Burdwan district, a former LF bastion as its nominee Saikat Panja won Monteswar Assembly seat by 1.27 lakh votes over his nearest CPI(M) rival Md Osman Gani Sarkar.

TMC'S winning margin in the May 2016 Assembly polls was a mere 706 votes when Congress and CPI(M) fought unitedly. The BJP, Congress and CPI(M) candiates lost their deposits in Monteswar.

TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee termed the mandate for her party as "people's revolt" against demonetisation.

"The by-election result is a befitting reply against the 'anti-people' demonetisation by the Centre. BJP should take lessons from this mandate," she told newsmen.