Trinamul sweeps Siliguri Mahakuma Parishad polls for first time

So far, the Left has always been in power in the council

Supporters of Trinamul celebrate on the outskirts of Siliguri town after the SMP victory.: Picture by Passang Yolmo

Avijit Sinha, Bireswar Banerjee   |   TT  |  Siliguri   |    30.06.22  : Trinamul made a clean sweep at the Siliguri Mahakuma Parishad (SMP) elections in all three tiers on Wednesday and virtually obliterated its rivals, especially the BJP, which had bagged both the Assembly seats of rural Siliguri last year.

Since 1989, when SMP was formed after dissolution of Darjeeling Zilla Parishad as the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council was constituted in hills in 1988, this is the first time that Trinamul has come to power in the rural body.

So far, the Left had always been in power in the SMP. 

For the saffron camp, the sole element of “success” was that the party could win a single seat in the upper tier of the SMP while Trinamul bagged all the remaining eight, the latter’s best performance in the SMP so far. 

In all, the BJP could win around 18 per cent of the total 537 seats while Trinamul secured 71 per cent or 383 of the total seats. 

Alok Chakraborty, the chairman of Darjeeling (plains) district Trinamul, said he was a happy man.

“On February 16 this year, when we met chief minister Mamata Banerjee in Uttarkanya along with all the Trinamul councillors after winning the Siliguri Municipal Corporation (SMC), I had promised her that we will also gift Siliguri Mahakuma Parishad to her. We could make good the promise,” he said.

Since this morning, as results of the village panchayats, the lowest tier, started pouring in, it was found that Mamata Banerjee’s party had made a strong start.

Trinamul won 320 of 462 seats, the BJP 86 seats. The Left and Congress together could win only 36 seats.

Gradually, as the day rolled on, it was found that Trinamul bagged all the four samitis, Matigara, Naxalbari, Phansidewa and Kharibari.

Out of 66 seats in this tier, Trinamul secured 55 seats while nine seats went to the BJP.

“The Left and the Congress could secure some seats in the panchayats but in the two upper tiers, they did not get even a single seat. This indicates that unlike some other parts of Bengal where the Left have ascended to second position at the recent civic polls, BJP is still in the second position in this region,” said a political observer.

The winning spree of Trinamul continued throughout the day, with elated supporters, including women, hitting the streets.

“The back-to-back wins (in the SMC in urban Siliguri and the SMP in rural Siliguri) within a span of four months have bolstered the confidence of party workers. For years now our party was not getting success in Siliguri sub-division and in Darjeeling district as a whole,” said Vedabrata Dutta, Trinamul’s spokesperson in Siliguri.

The win, Trinamul insiders said, was vital for a couple of reasons. First, it was necessary for the party to prove its support in Darjeeling district where it could not secure a single Assembly seat. Second, party workers of other north Bengal districts will work with renewed vigour for rural polls of next year.

For the BJP, the main consolation was Ajay Oraon who defeated Trinamul’s Kajal Ghosh at seat five of the SMP in Kharibari block. 

“We will play the role of a responsible and strong Opposition. We have elected representatives in all three tiers and they will continue to work for people. Our party will surely analyse the poll results,” said Anandamoy Barman, the president of BJP’s Siliguri (organisational) district.