Mamata Banerjee, West Bengal Chief Minister, announced former State Minister Gautam Deb as the next mayor of Siliguri after Trinamul wrested the Siliguri Municipal Corporation board from the Left Front after seven years, making it a defeat 4-0 lead in this round of the civic polls before leaving for North Bengal on Monday.
Goutam Deb won from ward 33 of the Siliguri Municipal Corporation by over 3,000 votes.
The timing of Mamatas’s visit to North Bengal, the visit when the Trinamul has wrested the only municipal corporation run by the Left in the state, could not have been better.
Seven years ago, Mamata had made a similar trip to Siliguri soon after the CPM led by former minister Asok Bhattacharya won 23 wards in the Siliguri Municipal Corporation.
In 2022, Mamata has no need to seek for favour from anyone else.
“People have given their verdict. Most people of north Bengal had voted for BJP in the Assembly elections, but they have done nothing since then. They said the tea gardens will be opened but no step has been taken. The Left Front too did nothing for the region. We brought development,” Mamata Banerjee said.
The Trinamul had acquired leads in all four civic bodies, voting for which were held on Saturday February 12. Counting began at 8am on Monday. By noon, Trinamul was leading in 40 of the 41 wards in the prestigious Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation, 37 of the 47 wards in Siliguri, 56 of 106 in Asansol and 30 of 33 in Chandernagore.
While the Trinamul was racing ahead in the four municipal corporations, only the Siliguri mayor’s name was announced. One of the main reasons behind the sudden announcement was Goutam Deb being pushed to the sidelines after his defeat in the 2021 Assembly polls.
Mamata can easily claim the victory is hers as poll strategist Prashant Kishore and his team were kept at bay during the poll process.
With Bengal standing firmly behind her, Mamata has raised the tempo on her national aspirations as she kept her stand on the Congress ambivalent, which is pitching for a combined fight against the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
Mamata said she had approached the Congress as well as the CPM for a common platform against the BJP.
The Bengal chief minister said she was in touch with her counterparts in the non-BJP ruled states. “I have spoken with the chief ministers of Telangana and Tamil Nadu. There is a sense of cooperation between us. Any party which is in favour of secularism should come under the same platform. The ball is now in the Congress’s court,” she said.
Reacting to Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s comments on Bengal, Mamata said, “His words make it clear BJP is losing Uttar Pradesh.”
