Kolkata Dec 27 PTI The West Bengal State Election Commission on Monday announced that polls to four municipal corporations -- Siliguri Chandannagar Bidhannagar Asansol -- will be held on January 22 The commission left out Howrah Municipal Corporation amid the ongoing row between the Mamata Banerjee government and Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar over a bill seeking its bifurcation Making the announcement at his office here State Election Commissioner Saurav Das said that nomination filing for the January 22 polls to be held from 7 am to 5 pm will commence on December 28 The last date for submitting nomination is January 3 The papers will be scrutinised the day after January 6 has been fixed as the last date for withdrawing the nominations Das told reporters Of the four Asansol is the largest municipal corporation with 106 seats followed by Siliguri with 47 Chandannagar with 33 and Bidhannagar with 41 wards he said Repoll if any will be held on January 24 the SEC said Counting of votes will be held on January 25 2022 The commission has adopted electoral rolls updated up to November 1 2021 Das said He also said that model code of conduct will be applicable in the poll-bound areas from Monday The governor on Sunday said that he had on November 24 sent back the bifurcation bill -- which seeks to carve out Bally Municipality out of Howrah Municipal Corporation -- to the state government with a number of queries for which clarifications have not been provided this far The SEC and the West Bengal government had earlier told the Calcutta High Court that plans were afoot to hold elections to five municipal corporations in the state on January 22 and the remaining civic bodies where polls are due on February 27 Elections to Kolkata Municipal Corporation were held on December 19 Meanwhile members of the opposition BJP the Left Front and the CPIM on Monday walked out of an all-party meet convened by the State Election Commission claiming that there was no commitment on holding Howrah Municipal Corporation HMC elections The TMC however claimed that the opposition leaders were present all throughout the meeting We walked out of the meeting for two reasons -- SEC gave a vague response when asked about HMC polls and our request for postponing the elections to four municipal corporations by a week was not entertained BJP MP Arjun Singh said Echoing him CPI M leader Rabin Deb said the Left Front members stormed out as there was no word on Howrah Municipal Corporation polls The SEC also did not pay attention to our demand for taking into consideration the voter list updated till January 2022 It wants to go by the list that was updated till November 1 2021 he said Senior TMC leader Tapas Roy said the opposition wanted to delay the polling process as they were afraid to face defeat They opposition leaders were all there during the meeting Dates for HMC polls could not be announced as the governor is holding up the bill and issuing misleading statements at BJPs behest he alleged Elections to Kolkata Municipal Corporation were held on December 19 The ruling TMC won the KMC elections clinching 134 of 144 seats in a ringing endorsement for the party seven months after its landslide win in the assembly polls The BJP which lost much of its steam after the assembly poll defeat managed to win just three wards The Congress and the CPI M-led Left Front bagged two wards each and Independents three PTI AMRSUS PNT RMS RMS

Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], December 27 (ANI): West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar on Monday said that the Howrah Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill is currently pending consideration with the governor as he is awaiting inputs on the bill from the state government.

Kolkata Dec 25 PTI West Bengal Assembly Speaker Biman Bandyopadhyay who has had several run-ins with Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar in the recent past on Saturday said he has written to President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to apprise them of Dhankhars interference in legislative matters The speaker had earlier expressed anguish over Dhankhars insistence to administer oath to TMC MLAs including CM Mamata Banerjee after the September 30 elections He had engaged in a war of words with the governor over appointment of Mukul Roy as Public Accounts Committee PAC chairman The two have also sparred over a bill seeking separation of Bally Municipality from Howrah Municipal Corporation The bill has been passed by the Assembly and is waiting for the governors assent I have written to the PM and the President to complain against his governors tendency to violate constitutional conventions and interfere in legislative matters His conduct does not befit the constitutional head of a state the speaker told PTI Bandopadhyay recently alleged that polls to Howrah Municipal Corporation were getting delayed with the governor taking time to give his assent to the bill Dhankhar on his part said he was yet to get documents that he sought pertaining to the bill PTI SUS RMS RMS

Kolkata Nov 24 PTI West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Wednesday returned to the state government for reconsideration a bill for excluding areas of erstwhile Bally municipality from Howrah Municipal Corporation and observed that the authorities have acted in an arbitrary unfair and non-judicious manner The state cabinet had taken a decision to simultaneously constitute a new municipality covering areas of erstwhile Bally Municipality I am constrained to observe that on quintessentially jurisdictional aspect in respect of consideration of the objections by the State Government under section 219 of the Howrah Municipal Corporation Act 1980 Act the authorities have acted in an arbitrary unfair and non-judicious manner the governor said in a four-page note to the Mamata Banerjee government No details of any consideration by the state government had emanated either from the order or otherwise Dhankar said and sought several documents for consideration of The Howrah Municipal Corporation Amendment Bill 2021 relating to proceedings of hearing and adjudication of objections Holding that objections are to be considered by the state government he asked on what premise or authority objections came to be considered by the Howrah Sadar SDO or the district magistrate of Howrah The governor asked for full record of consideration of the objections by the state government and proceedings and full details of objections and their disposal in relation to The Howrah Municipal Corporation Second Amendment Act 2015 He also sought the Assembly proceedings with respect to the Bill that finally led to The Howrah Municipal Corporation Second Amendment Act 2015 Noting that the record made available indicates that 18 objections were received to the proposed bill Dhankhar said that the Howrah Sadar SDO by a notice dated July 19 had indicated to the objectors that they may appear before him for a hearing on July 30 Dhankhar wrote that all these notices carry the assertion Whereas you have placed a proposal to the Commissioner Howrah Municipal Corporation for exclusion of area of erstwhile Bally Municipality from the jurisdiction of Howrah Municipal Corporation He wrote that this assertion is not in sync with the objections preferred as the proposal by the objectors to the commissioner was not for exclusion of area of erstwhile Bally Municipality from the jurisdiction of Howrah Municipal Corporation but the objections were to the contrary Such factually inaccurate representation in the notice dated 1972021 apart from being inappropriate is bound to adversely impact the proceedings the governor wrote He noted that the SDO in his communication to the district magistrate proposed disposal of the objections on the ground that the petitioners submitted the petition beyond 30 days of publication and there is no specific objection regarding any particular mouza etc rather against the general notification as a whole for better development work under Howrah Municipal Corporation compared to Bally Municipality The rationale and premise indicated in the communication dated 482021 are unacceptable as there is no final adjudication of the objections the governor said The district magistrate rejected the suggestionobjections Dhankhar wrote holding that it is an appalling aspect that one who did not accord hearing to the objectors declined the suggestionobjections on the basis of the communication from the SDO He said that the premise is also in disregard of the legislative mandate in section 2192 of the Howrah Municipal Corporation Act 1980 This stipulation allows Any local authority or any inhabitants or rate-payers of such area affected by such intention of the State Government declared by such notification may if they object to such intention submit their objections in writing to the State Government within such period as may be specified in such notification and the State Government shall take such objections into consideration Dhankhar said that as per legal provisions there ought to have been lawful fair and objective consideration of the objections by the State Government The consideration of objections leaves all to be desired from the legal perspective Such arbitrary and unjust determination of objections cannot be legally sanctified Dhankhar said He said that it is of considerable significance that this determination of objections is jurisdictionally quintessential for any way forward towards taking steps to amend the Act PTI AMR KK KK KK