Kolkata, Nov 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) The West Bengal Bharatiya Janata Party is planning to retain more than 50 per cent of its existing candidates for the upcoming Kolkata and Howrah municipal corporation elections, a senior party leader said on Thursday.
Leaders and workers who joined the BJP before and after the 2021 Assembly elections and have established popularity in their respective areas will also be considered for candidature in the remaining seats, he said.
However, the state leadership will have to obtain clearance from the party's central leadership before finalising the list of candidates.
There is speculation that the civic elections in Kolkata and Howrah may be held in the third week of December. The election notification is expected after Kali Puja on November 8, prompting the BJP to complete its candidate selection process by November 15.
The party has already received applications from aspiring candidates. State leaders are now visiting different mandals to seek feedback from grassroots workers on the prospective candidates. This exercise is expected to be completed by November 11.
The feedback will subsequently be placed before the state committee. The party's core committee, along with the election committees for the Kolkata and Howrah municipal corporations, will then finalise the names. BJP central observer Sunil Bansal will also attend the meeting, the senior leader said.
The BJP is exercising caution in candidate selection this time to avoid discontent within its organisational ranks. State president Samik Bhattacharya had earlier said that preference would be given to workers who had maintained a long association with the party and contributed to its organisational activities.
He had made it clear that merely joining the BJP shortly before the elections would not guarantee a councillor's ticket.
However, organisational seniority will not be the sole criterion. The party will also consider a candidate's acceptance among local residents, personal image, public outreach and prospects in the constituency, the leader said.
The BJP is attaching considerable importance to the Kolkata and Howrah civic elections. Union Minister of State for Education Sukanta Majumdar has been entrusted with overseeing the Kolkata polls, with Raju Banerjee as co-in-charge. State Commerce and Industries Minister Tapas Roy is the convener, while MLA Ritesh Tiwari is the co-convener.
The state leadership is working on the final selection process before forwarding its recommendations to Bansal, who is overseeing the municipal corporation elections.
Rajya Sabha MP Rahul Sinha, who is in charge of the Howrah civic polls, will also submit his proposed list of candidates to the party's central leadership for consideration.
Source: IANS
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