Tripura Municipal Elections: BJP Sweeps The Votes, Wins 217 of 222 Seats

Agartala : The ruling Bhartiya Janta Party has swept the votes in the crucial Tripura civic body polls. They have won 217 of total 222 seats, while the Trinamool Congress emerged as a strong political force in the polls for which polling was held on November 25. 

The counting of votes in 13 counting centers, for over 200 seats in the Agartala Municipal Corporation (AMC) and other civic bodies in Tripura began at 8 AM. Officials of the State Election Commission said the BJP has established an absolute majority in the 51-member Agartala Municipal Corporation (AMC) winning all 51 seats.

Despite allegations of malpractices being raised, nearly 81.54% of over 4.93 lakh voters had exercised their franchise in elections to Tripura’s 14 civic bodies on Thursday. The electoral battle had witnessed the ruling BJP locked in battle with the Trinamool Congress which is foraying into the Northeast and elsewhere to establish itself as a national party, and with the CPI(M) which the saffron party had dethroned from power in this state some years ago.

Altogether there are 334 seats in the urban local bodies, including Agartala Municipal Corporation (51 wards), 13 municipal councils and six nagar panchayats in the state. The ruling BJP has fielded candidates in all seats in the Tripura civic elections and has already won 112 out of the total 334 seats uncontested in the Agartala Municipal Corporation and 19 urban bodies. In the remaining 222 seats, as many as 785 contestants are in the fray after 36 candidates withdrew their nominations.

According to State Election Commission officials, the main opposition party CPI-M won three seats in three municipal bodies in Kailashahar, Ambassa and Panisagar while the Trinamool Congress won one seat in Ambassa Municipal council.

The Trinamool Congress secured over 20 per cent votes and second position in 27 of the 51 seats in the politically important AMC which has put up a big challenge to both the ruling BJP and the key opposition CPI-M led Left parties.

However, the Left parties and the TMC did not put up candidates in all the 334 seats in the civic elections to the AMC and 19 other urban local bodies – Municipal Councils and Nagar Panchayats — alleging unprecedented political violence, attacks and intimidations.