TMC grip loosens in Salt Lake, Rajarhat-Gopalpur

Kolkata: A Trinamool stronghold for the last 15 years, the anti-incumbency wave swept out the Trinamool from Bidhannagar and Rajarhat Gopalpur this time, creating a massive upset across the townships of Salt Lake and areas off VIP Road.Sharadwat Mukherjee of BJP, a clinical oncologist, emerged as the giant killer in Bidhannagar constituency, defeating four-time Trinamool MLA Sujit Bose by a huge margin of 37,330 votes. In Rajarhat Gopalpur, Trinamool's Aditi Munshi lost to BJP's Tarunjyoti Tewari by 27,757 votes. Trinamool, however, managed to retain Rajarhat New Town, with Tapash Chatterjee leading by a narrow margin of 323 votes.It was a tense situation at the counting centre at Bidhannagar College, with Trinamool and BJP party workers assembling for the counting of three Assembly constituency seats — Bidhannagar, Rajarhat New Town and Rajarhat Gopalpur. There was initial optimism among the Trinamool workers, but as the day progressed, the scene turned bleak for Trinamool workers and celebrations were in store for the BJP party workers.A section of Trinamool workers started an agitation near the counting centre and allegedly started pelting stones at BJP supporters. Trinamool women supporters from Rajarhat New Town alleged that their agents were beaten up by the BJP as a huge police force came in to disperse the mob. As the BJP's win became imminent, supporters started celebrations by chanting ‘Jai Sree Ram' slogans near the counting centre. "We are overwhelmed by the wonderful response the people of Bengal have given. We are getting 2/3rd votes. This is a landslide victory, this is the people's mandate. In the coming days you will see several changes taking place in this state," said Sharadwat Mukherjee of BJP.The reason for Bose and Munshi's defeat, apart from the anti-incumbency factor, was the failure to address and solve some of the long-standing civic issues, said locals. People in Salt Lake and Lake Town prioritise governance, infrastructure and transparency. Long-term incumbency created a "fatigue factor" among middle-class voters. Also, being a satellite township, the expectations of the electorate in this constituency have always been very high. From poor condition of roads in many places to inadequate drainage systems to overhead cable mess, there have been a number of issues that Bose, as the local MLA, failed to solve in the last 15 years. Bidhannagar and Rajarhat have long been plagued by reports of "syndicate" culture—informal groups controlling construction and local supplies. Despite the state govt's efforts, the perception that local Trinamool leaders were tied to these syndicates alienated residents, particularly those in the high-rise apartments and residential blocks.
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