West Bengal, 09 July (H.S.): Amid the ongoing political realignment in West Bengal's urban local bodies following the change in the state government, the Champdani Municipality Board in Hooghly district has effectively collapsed after Chairperson Suresh Mishra and 19 Trinamool Congress (TMC) councillors resigned from their posts.
According to sources, two TMC councillors had submitted their resignations a day earlier. Thursday, Chairperson Suresh Mishra and the remaining 17 TMC councillors also handed over their resignation letters to the municipality's Executive Officer. The Executive Officer is expected to forward the resignations to the Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO) of Chandannagar for further administrative action.
Sources said that TMC councillor Tarak Singh of Ward No. 12 and councillor Salim Qureshi of Ward No. 10 have not yet resigned as they are currently out of the area.
Meanwhile, Congress councillor of Ward No. 7, Daroga Rajbhar said he would take a decision after consulting the party leadership. However, with the resignation of the overwhelming majority of councillors, the Champdani Municipal Board has effectively ceased to function.
Champdani Municipality comprises 22 wards, of which 21 were represented by the Trinamool Congress and one by the Congress.
The development comes amid a series of administrative disruptions in municipal bodies across West Bengal following the political transition in the state. Several municipalities have witnessed the resignation of TMC chairpersons, vice-chairpersons and councillors, resulting in the collapse of elected boards. In some civic bodies, administrators have been appointed to ensure the continuation of municipal services.
The trend was first witnessed in the Chandannagar Municipal Corporation in Hooghly district. Subsequently, the municipal boards of Chinsurah, Bansberia, Bhadreswar, Dankuni and Tarakeswar also ceased to function before completing their tenure.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey
