Jalpaiguri: The Chairman-in-Council of the Jalpaiguri Municipality has been dissolved following a directive from the state leadership. The resignation letters of Chairperson Papia Paul and vice-chairman Saikat Chatterjee were unanimously accepted during the Board of Councillors meeting on Thursday.
Papia Paul resigned on November 7 and Saikat Chatterjee on November 8.
The meeting, held at the municipal hall, was presided over by Councillor Lopamudra Adhikari, who has been appointed interim chairperson by the State Urban Development department.
During the session, she proposed the acceptance of both resignations, which councillors approved with a round of applause. On Friday, Saikat Chatterjee will be sworn-in as the new Chairperson of the Jalpaiguri Municipality, while Sandeep Mahato will assume office as vice-chairman.
The development follows an announcement by Jalpaiguri District Trinamool Congress president Mahua Gope on November 7, stating that the leadership of two municipalities— Jalpaiguri and Maynaguri—would be changed as part of an organisational revamp. Political analysts view the reshuffle as part of the Trinamool Congress’s strategy to strengthen its base ahead of the 2026 state Assembly elections. In the last Lok Sabha polls, the party had trailed the BJP by nearly 17,000 votes in Jalpaiguri town and around 3,000 votes in Maynaguri.
Similar changes were made earlier in Malbazar, where the Trinamool had also lagged behind. The new appointments indicate the party’s focus on promoting younger leadership to take on the BJP in the upcoming polls. In Jalpaiguri, vice-chairman Saikat Chatterjee will succeed Papia Paul, while Sandeep Mahato will take over as vice-chairman. In Maynaguri, former MLA Anantadev Adhikari will be replaced by Manoj Roy and Councillor Somesh Sanyal of Ward No. 4 will become Vice-Chairman.
Speaking on Thursday, Saikat Chatterjee said: “Tomorrow, in the presence of administrative officials, I will take oath as chairperson. My focus will be on further developing and beautifying Jalpaiguri and ensuring better and more efficient municipal services for all residents.”