South Dinajpur: BJP may lose control over some Panchayats

BALURGHAT: BJP may lose control over a few Panchayats of South Dinajpur after its elected party members recently switched to state's ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) party.

According to a source, the BJP-ruled Panchayats, where the party has already lost the majority after the joining of its party members to Trinamool, are under the blocks of Balurghat, Hili, Gangarampur, Harirampur and Kushmandi.

"The Trinamool Congress has already attained the absolute majority of the Panchayats of all five blocks including Balurghat, Hili, Gangarampur, Harirampur and Kushmandi after the switching over of the elected saffron members to TMC. After receiving instruction from the party's district leadership, the TMC members will file the no-confidence motion against the BJP-led Panchayat boards to the Block Development Officers," said the source, also adding many of the BJP Panchayat members have started switching over to TMC immediately after the Assembly poll results were announced. Such turncoats are still jumping the ship.

Notably, the TMC has already taken control of a few Panchayats of Hili, Balurghat, Kushmandi, Gangarampur and Harirampur from the BJP due to the switch over.

"The BJP-led Panchayats have failed to conduct the development works due to their internal factionalism. In some of the Panchayats, the BJP members have raised fingers against their own party Panchayat pradhans and upa-pradhans for their alleged involvement in corruption and misappropriation of funds. The BJP members have also brought no-confidence against them and submitted its written copy to the BDOs," said a senior Trinamool leader of South Dinajpur.

According to him, being frustrated the BJP members had contacted the district TMC leadership expressing their desire to join the TMC.

"If the trend continues, the BJP party will lose control of all of the Panchayats where they formed the Panchayat boards within a few months. But, it is not our target to snatch the power from the BJP. Our party will welcome the BJP members if they wish to join the TMC in order to resume the development works for the people in those Panchayats where no such task has been initiated since a long time," the TMC leader added.