The huge wins of both the heavyweight candidates in Asansol and Durgapur of West Burdwan district, the largest industrial zone in the state, has boosted the chances of the civil polls of Durgapur Municipal Corporation Elections in August this year. The elections are due for more than a year now.

After consecutive drubbing of the Trinamul Congress in the hands of BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in Durgapur West and East Assembly seats, and in the 2021 Assembly polls in Durgapur West seat, the TMC did not take the risk of holding the polls of Durgapur Municipal Corporation, due since in 2023.

In the 2017 DMC, the TMC had swept the polls by winning all the 43 wards. In 2023, the state government appointed Anindita Mukherjee as the chairperson of the Board of Administrators (BOA) of DMC. A top leader of TMC, requesting anonymity, said that with these results the party will go for the polls in August this year. She was mayor of DMC from 2017 to 2023.

S S Ahluwalia of the BJP had won by huge margins from Durgapur East and Durgapur West Assembly seats in the 2029 Lok Sabha polls and Lakhsman Ghorui of the BJP had won in 2021 polls from the Durgapur West assembly seat. However, Pradip Mazumdar wrested the Durgapur East Assembly seat and later became the state panchayat minister.

But Kirti Jha Azad, the member of the 1983 World Cup Winning team contested this time from Burdwan–Durgapur Lok Sabha seat and has defeated former state BJP president Dilip Ghosh.

“We are really happy today and thank the people of Burdwan–Durgapur for showering their blessings upon us. Our performance in the industrial belt of Durgapur has improved immensely compared to 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The Durgapur Municipal Corporation polls will be held this year and we expect to win easily,” said Pradip Mazumdar, state panchayat minister and MLA of Durgapur East.

“I thank the people of Durgapur for keeping their trust in me and I dedicate this win to our Didi Mamata Banerjee, who has emerged as even a greater political leader in the Lok Sabha polls in the country. Hopefully, I will be able to raise the issues of Durgapur and try to solve them,” said Kirti Azad.

Since the beginning of counting, Kirti Azad had taken the lead today and ended up as winner with a victory margin of about 1,40,999 votes.