Kolkata’s civic administration could see BJP-linked coordinators appointed across all 209 proposed wards if the Supreme Court does not lift a stay on the municipal elections after November 30, Bengal chief minister Suvendu Adhikari said on Tuesday. The proposal has triggered Opposition allegations that the state government is attempting to control the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) without elected councillors.
Adhikari said the government wanted the civic polls to proceed on schedule but would make alternative arrangements if the legal dispute over the ward delimitation exercise delayed the election process. “If the Supreme Court vacates the stay imposed by the high court’s vacation bench, the elections will be held on time,” he said, according to the report.
“If the apex court decides to continue the stay, we will appoint coordinators in all 209 wards after November 30,” the chief minister added. He said the coordinators would not be administrative officials or members of the general public, but people from the BJP.
The state government has filed a special leave petition in the Supreme Court against an interim order of a Calcutta High Court vacation bench. The high court has stayed the announcement of the civic poll schedule until a regular bench considers a petition challenging the validity of the ward delimitation exercise. The order also restrained the State Election Commission from issuing the election notification. The high court is scheduled to reopen on November 16.
The proposed ward reorganisation would increase the number of KMC wards from 144 to 209. The dispute followed appeals by the CPM and the Trinamool Congress against an earlier order that had refused an interim stay on the government’s move. The petitioners have alleged that the delimitation was disproportionate and opaque, and that it could give the BJP an electoral advantage.
The petitioners also alleged that booths where the BJP performed well in the Assembly elections were grouped to form new wards, while older wards in which Opposition parties performed strongly were divided. The delimitation challenge remains sub judice. Adhikari clarified that the high court had not quashed the exercise and had only restrained the issuance of the election notification while the legal dispute continued.
The KMC has been under an administrator since June 8, following the dissolution of its elected board. The prolonged uncertainty has raised concerns about the continuity of municipal services, including water supply, road maintenance, street lighting and waste collection. Adhikari said on November 7 that civic services could not be allowed to suffer if the elections were delayed.
The proposed coordinator system has drawn criticism from Opposition leaders. Trinamool Congress MLA and spokesperson Kunal Ghosh accused the government of trying to bypass democratic and constitutional procedures. CPM central committee member Sujan Chakraborty also alleged that the move was intended to take control of the civic body while ignoring the electoral process.
The immediate next steps depend on the Supreme Court’s response to the state’s petition and the Calcutta High Court’s consideration of the delimitation challenge after it reopens on November 16. The election schedule will remain uncertain until the court proceedings are resolved.
