Civic polls in West Bengal, including for the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), have been postponed “for the time being” in the wake of the novel coronavirus outbreak, a senior official said on Monday.

The decision was taken at an all-party meeting called to decide the dates for the elections, State Election Commissioner Sourav Das said.

“We have decided to defer the civic polls for the time being because of the coronavirus outbreak. We will again hold a meeting to take a call on the matter after 15 days,” he said.

The ruling TMC had appealed to the SEC on Sunday to defer the polls, a demand that also had the backing of opposition parties.

Elections to 107 municipal bodies of the state and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation are being viewed as a litmus test for the TMC and the BJP, a year ahead of the crucial Assembly polls.

Civic polls in West Bengal, including for the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), have been postponed “for the time being” in the wake of the novel coronavirus outbreak, a senior official said on Monday.

Civic polls in West Bengal, including for the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), have been postponed “for the time being” in the wake of the novel coronavirus outbreak, a senior official said on Monday. The decision was taken at an all-party meeting called to decide the dates for the elections, State Election Commissioner Sourav Das said. “We have decided to defer the civic polls for the time being because of the coronavirus outbreak. We will again hold a meeting to take a call on the matter after 15 days,” he said. The ruling TMC had appealed to the SEC on Sunday to defer the polls, a demand that also had the backing of opposition parties. Elections to 107 municipal bodies of the state and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation are being viewed as a litmus test for the TMC and the BJP, a year ahead of the crucial Assembly polls.

West Bengal civic polls deferred amid coronavirus scare

Less than two per cent of the electorate turned out to cast their votes on Monday in 83 wards of urban local bodies in Kashmir in the first two hours of polling for the first of the four-phased elections in the valley amidst stringent security arrangements.

"Nearly 1600 voters have exercised their franchise till 9.00 am at the 150 pollings stations set up in 83 wards across Kashmir Valley where polling is going on today," an official said.

Around 85,000 voters including 40,800 women are eligible to vote in the valley. Out of 30,074 voters in three wards of Srinagar Municipal Corporation, only 417 turned up at heavily-fortified polling stations.

Polling is picking up in north Kashmir as more than 10 per cent of 4,700 voters cast their votes in the first two hours for Kupwara Municipal Committee, followed by 5.5 per cent in Handwara town.

The poll percentage in Bandipora was an abysmal one per cent while Baramulla recorded around 0.8 per cent turnout, the official said.

In Anantnag, only 43 of the 1,639 votes have been cast so far, the official said, adding in Budgam only 12 voters turned up in the first two hours of polling.

The polling, which began at 7 am and will conclude at 4 pm, is being held for only 83 wards in the valley today as 69 wards have been won uncontested.

Of the 150 polling stations in Kashmir division, 138 polling stations have been categorized as hypersensitive.

The urban local body polls were announced last month but two major political parties -- National Conference and PDP -- have boycotted the elections accusing the Centre of not taking a firm stand on protection of Article 35-A of the Constitution which is facing a legal challenge in the Supreme Court.

Militants have killed two National Conference workers and issued threats to anyone participating in these polls, resulting in absence of any campaigning by candidates. 
In fact, in dozens of wards especially in south Kashmir, no candidate has filed nomination papers for polls.

For ensuring security of candidates, they have been moved to safe locations and their details have not been made public.&nbsp;

 
BJP candidate injured in stone-pelting in Bandipora

A BJP candidate, contesting the urban local body polls in Bandipora district of Jammu and Kashmir, was Monday injured during stone-pelting by miscreants, officials said.

Adil Ahmad Buhru, BJP candidate for ward 15 of Bandipora Municipal Committee, was injured when miscreants pelted stones at him at Dachigam while he was on way to cast his vote at a polling station, the officials said.

Buhru was rushed to a nearby hospital, the official said, adding stone pelting was reported from several areas of Bandipora during the polling.

BJP spokesman Altaf Thakhur condemned the attack on the party candidate, saying those who indulge in violence are scared of democracy. 
Polling for the first of the four-phased elections to urban local bodies in Jammu and Kashmir is currently underway.&nbsp;

Less than two per cent of the electorate turned out to cast their votes on Monday in 83 wards of urban local bodies in Kashmir in the first two hours of polling for the first of the four-phased elections in the valley amidst stringent security arrangements.

Less than two per cent of the electorate turned out to cast their votes on Monday in 83 wards of urban local bodies in Kashmir in the first two hours of polling for the first of the four-phased elections in the valley amidst stringent security arrangements. "Nearly 1600 voters have exercised their franchise till 9.00 am at the 150 pollings stations set up in 83 wards across Kashmir Valley where polling is going on today," an official said. Around 85,000 voters including 40,800 women are eligible to vote in the valley. Out of 30,074 voters in three wards of Srinagar Municipal Corporation, only 417 turned up at heavily-fortified polling stations. Polling is picking up in north Kashmir as more than 10 per cent of 4,700 voters cast their votes in the first two hours for Kupwara Municipal Committee, followed by 5.5 per cent in Handwara town. The poll percentage in Bandipora was an abysmal one per cent while Baramulla recorded around 0.8 per cent turnout, the official said. In Anantnag, only 43 of the 1,639 votes have been cast so far, the official said, adding in Budgam only 12 voters turned up in the first two hours of polling. The polling, which began at 7 am and will conclude at 4 pm, is being held for only 83 wards in the valley today as 69 wards have been won uncontested. Of the 150 polling stations in Kashmir division, 138 polling stations have been categorized as hypersensitive. The urban local body polls were announced last month but two major political parties -- National Conference and PDP -- have boycotted the elections accusing the Centre of not taking a firm stand on protection of Article 35-A of the Constitution which is facing a legal challenge in the Supreme Court. Militants have killed two National Conference workers and issued threats to anyone participating in these polls, resulting in absence of any campaigning by candidates. In fact, in dozens of wards especially in south Kashmir, no candidate has filed nomination papers for polls. For ensuring security of candidates, they have been moved to safe locations and their details have not been made public. BJP candidate injured in stone-pelting in Bandipora A BJP candidate, contesting the urban local body polls in Bandipora district of Jammu and Kashmir, was Monday injured during stone-pelting by miscreants, officials said. Adil Ahmad Buhru, BJP candidate for ward 15 of Bandipora Municipal Committee, was injured when miscreants pelted stones at him at Dachigam while he was on way to cast his vote at a polling station, the officials said. Buhru was rushed to a nearby hospital, the official said, adding stone pelting was reported from several areas of Bandipora during the polling. BJP spokesman Altaf Thakhur condemned the attack on the party candidate, saying those who indulge in violence are scared of democracy. Polling for the first of the four-phased elections to urban local bodies in Jammu and Kashmir is currently underway.

J&K civic polls: Less than 2% of electorate turns out to vote, BJP candidate injured in stone-pelting

In what has been dubbed as Yogi Adityanath&#39;s first big electoral test after assuming office as Uttar Pradesh chief minister, ruling BJP swept the Uttar Pradesh civic polls bagging nine of the ten mayoral seats for which results were declared till evening while leading in six others where the counting was in progress.

The ruling BJP bagged several prestigious mayoral seats including Ayodhya, Varanasi, Lucknow, Gorakhpur and was leading in several others.

Opposition Congress again fared poorly, including in its bastion of Amethi, while the BSP had some reason to cheer as its candidate snatched the Aligarh mayoral seat, a traditional BJP stronghold, reports say.

In Ayodhya, BJP&#39;s Rishikesh Upadhyay secured 44,642 votes and defeated nearest rival SP&#39;s Gulshan Bindu, a transgender, by 3,601 votes.

In Prime Minister Narendra Modi Lok Sabha constituency of Varanasi, BJP candidate Mridula Jaiswal defeating her nearest opponent, Shalini of the Congress, by a comfortable margin of 78,843 votes.

In Lucknow, BJP&#39;s Sanyukta Bhatia became the first woman mayor of the state capital defeating nearest rival, Samajwadi Party&#39;s Meera Vardhan, by a huge margin of 1,31,356 votes.

In Gorakhpur, the home turf of Chief Minister Adityanath, BJP candidate Sitaram Jaiswal defeated Rahul Gupta of SP by 75,823 votes.

In western UP&#39;s Moradabad, BJP candidate Vinod Agarwal edged past Congress&#39;s Rizvan Qureishi by a margin of 22,635 votes.

In Saharanpur too BJP candidate Madan Walia fended off the challenge from BSP rival Fazlurehman to win by 2,000 votes.

The saffron party&#39;s Mukesh won the Mathura-Vrindavan seat defeating nearest rival Mohan Singh of Congress by 22,108 votes.

In Aligarh, however, BSP&#39;s Mohammad Furqan wrested the saffron stronghold defeating BJP&#39;s Rajiv Agarwal by a margin of 11,990 votes in what was virtually a direct fight.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who went on a whirl wind tour of the state to ensure the victory of his party candidates, described it as a &quot;historic win&quot;.

He attributed the victory to Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s vision and BJP chief Amit Shah&#39;s guidance.

Now the BJP will now look forward to achieving the goal of hundred per cent success in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, he added. Adityanath said that the Congress had been wiped out in its bastion Amethi.

Polling was held for 16 nagar nigams, 198 nagar palika parishads and 438 nagar panchayats with an average turnout of all the three phases estimated at 52.5 per cent of the 3.32 crore voters.&nbsp;

Opposition Congress again fared poorly, including in its bastion of Amethi, while the BSP had some reason to cheer as its candidate snatched the Aligarh mayoral seat, a traditional BJP stronghold, reports say.

In what has been dubbed as Yogi Adityanath's first big electoral test after assuming office as Uttar Pradesh chief minister, ruling BJP swept the Uttar Pradesh civic polls bagging nine of the ten mayoral seats for which results were declared till evening while leading in six others where the counting was in progress. The ruling BJP bagged several prestigious mayoral seats including Ayodhya, Varanasi, Lucknow, Gorakhpur and was leading in several others. Opposition Congress again fared poorly, including in its bastion of Amethi, while the BSP had some reason to cheer as its candidate snatched the Aligarh mayoral seat, a traditional BJP stronghold, reports say. In Ayodhya, BJP's Rishikesh Upadhyay secured 44,642 votes and defeated nearest rival SP's Gulshan Bindu, a transgender, by 3,601 votes. In Prime Minister Narendra Modi Lok Sabha constituency of Varanasi, BJP candidate Mridula Jaiswal defeating her nearest opponent, Shalini of the Congress, by a comfortable margin of 78,843 votes. In Lucknow, BJP's Sanyukta Bhatia became the first woman mayor of the state capital defeating nearest rival, Samajwadi Party's Meera Vardhan, by a huge margin of 1,31,356 votes. In Gorakhpur, the home turf of Chief Minister Adityanath, BJP candidate Sitaram Jaiswal defeated Rahul Gupta of SP by 75,823 votes. In western UP's Moradabad, BJP candidate Vinod Agarwal edged past Congress's Rizvan Qureishi by a margin of 22,635 votes. In Saharanpur too BJP candidate Madan Walia fended off the challenge from BSP rival Fazlurehman to win by 2,000 votes. The saffron party's Mukesh won the Mathura-Vrindavan seat defeating nearest rival Mohan Singh of Congress by 22,108 votes. In Aligarh, however, BSP's Mohammad Furqan wrested the saffron stronghold defeating BJP's Rajiv Agarwal by a margin of 11,990 votes in what was virtually a direct fight. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who went on a whirl wind tour of the state to ensure the victory of his party candidates, described it as a "historic win". He attributed the victory to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision and BJP chief Amit Shah's guidance. Now the BJP will now look forward to achieving the goal of hundred per cent success in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, he added. Adityanath said that the Congress had been wiped out in its bastion Amethi. Polling was held for 16 nagar nigams, 198 nagar palika parishads and 438 nagar panchayats with an average turnout of all the three phases estimated at 52.5 per cent of the 3.32 crore voters.

UP civic poll: BJP bags 9 out of 10 seats declared, leads in 6

Trinamool Congress on Wednesday won four municipalities in West Bengal -- one in Darjeeling hills and three in the plains -- while Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) captured three civic bodies in the hills including Darjeeling. 
 
Official sources said that TMC won Domkal municipality in Murshidabad district capturing 18 of the 21 wards. Congress emerged victorious in the rest two seats while CPI(M) bagged one. 
 
In Raigunj municipality of North Dinajpur district, TMC caputured 24 of the 27 wards while Congress won in two wards and BJP in one. 
 
TMC bagged Pujali municipality in South 24 Paraganas district winning 12 of the 16 wards. BJP bagged two seats while Congress and Indepentent won one seat each. 
 
Although GJM manged to retain three civic bodies in the hills, TMC put up a creditable performance winning in Mirik. Of the nine seats in Mirik, TMC won six and GJM three. 
 
GJM, however, maintained its supremacy in other civic bodies in the hills. 
 
The Morcha won 31 of the 32 seats in Darjeeling municipality where TMC has been able to emerge victorious in one seat. 
 
In Kurseong, GJM won 17 wards while TMC bagged the remaining three. 
 
GJM also won the civic body in Kalimpong capturing 19 of the 23 seats while TMC bagged two. 
 
Jan Andolan Party of Harka Bahadur Chetri, a former GJM leader who tried to outsmart the Morcha, failed to make a major gain in Kalimpong and managed to win only two seats. 
 
Election to the seven municipalities were held on May 14.

Mamata &#39;humbled&#39; by results

All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) Chief Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday expressed happiness after the overwhelming resulting of his party.

Banerjee took to Twitter to congratulate her party workers.

&quot;Congratulations to Ma Mati Manush for again &amp; again putting their trust in us. We are honored, privileged &amp; humbled #VerdictOfBengal ,&quot; she tweeted.

&quot;Congratulations to my brothers/sisters in hill areas of Darjeeling Kurseong Kalimpong Mirik for participating in the democratic process,&quot; she added.

She even thanked the people of Mirik for reposing faith on her party and asserted that her party will work sincerely for their development.

&quot;Special thanks to Mirik for reposing faith in us. We will work sincerely for you. After so many decades we begin a new era in the hills,&quot; she tweeted.

(Agencies)

Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) captured the three other municipalities

Trinamool Congress on Wednesday won four municipalities in West Bengal -- one in Darjeeling hills and three in the plains -- while Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) captured three civic bodies in the hills including Darjeeling. Official sources said that TMC won Domkal municipality in Murshidabad district capturing 18 of the 21 wards. Congress emerged victorious in the rest two seats while CPI(M) bagged one. In Raigunj municipality of North Dinajpur district, TMC caputured 24 of the 27 wards while Congress won in two wards and BJP in one. TMC bagged Pujali municipality in South 24 Paraganas district winning 12 of the 16 wards. BJP bagged two seats while Congress and Indepentent won one seat each. Although GJM manged to retain three civic bodies in the hills, TMC put up a creditable performance winning in Mirik. Of the nine seats in Mirik, TMC won six and GJM three. GJM, however, maintained its supremacy in other civic bodies in the hills. The Morcha won 31 of the 32 seats in Darjeeling municipality where TMC has been able to emerge victorious in one seat. In Kurseong, GJM won 17 wards while TMC bagged the remaining three. GJM also won the civic body in Kalimpong capturing 19 of the 23 seats while TMC bagged two. Jan Andolan Party of Harka Bahadur Chetri, a former GJM leader who tried to outsmart the Morcha, failed to make a major gain in Kalimpong and managed to win only two seats. Election to the seven municipalities were held on May 14. Mamata 'humbled' by results All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) Chief Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday expressed happiness after the overwhelming resulting of his party. Banerjee took to Twitter to congratulate her party workers. "Congratulations to Ma Mati Manush for again & again putting their trust in us. We are honored, privileged & humbled #VerdictOfBengal ," she tweeted. "Congratulations to my brothers/sisters in hill areas of Darjeeling Kurseong Kalimpong Mirik for participating in the democratic process," she added. She even thanked the people of Mirik for reposing faith on her party and asserted that her party will work sincerely for their development. "Special thanks to Mirik for reposing faith in us. We will work sincerely for you. After so many decades we begin a new era in the hills," she tweeted. (Agencies)

West Bengal civic polls: Mamata's TMC wins four out of seven seats

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