Date:31/05/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/05/31/stories/2007053107381200.htm

National

Left Front loses Panskura to Trinamool

Marcus Dam

Wins Durgapur and Dhupguri municipalities

KOLKATA: The Left Front in West Bengal suffered a setback losing the Panskura municipality to the Trinamool Congress-led Opposition alliance in Sunday's civic elections there. It, however, held onto the Durgapur and Dhupguri municipalities while the Congress retained control of the Cooper's Camp and Nalhati civic bodies where the polls were also held.

Elections were also held for several gram panchayats, panchayat samities and some zilla parishad seats across the State. The Left Front's dominance in most of the seats remained unchallenged.

The results of Sunday's polls were announced on Wednesday.

Trinamool Congress leaders claimed that the recent developments in Nandigram which is located in the same district [Purbo Medinipur] as is Panskura had contributed to the defeat of the Left Front there. That the people are not opposed to the Left Front's drive towards greater industrialisation was, however, reflected in the victory of the CPI(M) candidates in two gram panchayats adjoining Singur where the Tata Motors automobile manufacturing project is being set up.

Referring to the election results, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee pointed out that the Left Front's victories in the two gram panchayat seats in the Singur area showed that the people there were in favour of the Tata Motors project.

At a rally of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, he also said that the victory of the Left Front in the Nandigram Block III was also indicative of the people's support for industrialisation.

The victory "is being dedicated to the people of Nandigram and Singur," party leader Mamata Banerjee said.