Raiganj, Oct. 5 -- Though the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) and the National Citizens Party of India (NCPI) are not names that one gets to hear in political circles in Islampur or North Dinajpur often, these two parties are battling it out for the board formation of the Islampur Panchayat Samity.
The political battle is set to unfold in Islampur Panchayat Samity, North Dinajpur with the election for the new board scheduled to be held on Tuesday. Interestingly, the GJM which did not have a single winning member in the last Panchayat elections, is now claiming that it has an absolute majority to form the Panchayat Samity Board. If the GJM succeeds, it would mark an interesting change in the political equation of Islampur following the change of power in the state.
At the same time, the NCPI is also claiming that it has sufficient support to form the board.
The Islampur Panchayat Samity currently has 38 members. Before the change of power in the state, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) had 36 members while the BJP two. However, the political scenario changed on September 8, after 16 TMC members brought a no-confidence motion against Binta Das Sarkar, the Sabhapati of the then TMC-led board.
The no-confidence motion was passed at the meeting resulting in the removal of Binta Das Sarkar from the post of Sabhapati. Subsequently, 16 Panchayat Samity members, including Binta Das Sarkar, joined the NCPI.
On the other hand, the remaining 20 TMC members reportedly joined the GJMM. The two BJP members have so far remained outside both groups, making their position crucial ahead of Tuesday's board formation meeting.
Juber Alam, one of the former TMC members and now a GJM leader, claimed that all 20 members who joined the GJM would support its bid to form the board and said: "We have joined the GJM. TMC has lost its organisational strength in Islampur. For political security and development, we joined the GJM. We have an absolute majority and are confident of forming the board."
Binta Das Sarkar said: "A total of 16 members of our Panchayat Samity have joined NCPI. We expect some other members to support us in forming the board. The game has begun and we will end it."
Islampur MLA and Democratic Trinamool Congress (DTMC) leader Kanaiyalal Agarwal declined to comment on the political developments. North Dinajpur BJP vice-president Surajit Sen said: "Both groups intend to capture power. We are keeping a close watch on their activities."
Interestingly, both GJM and NCPI are allies of the BJP. Islampur BDO Pinaki Debnath said the election for the new Sabhapati would be held on Tuesday and adequate security arrangements will
be in place.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.