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63,229Gram Panchayat 9,730Panchayat Samiti 928Zilla Parishad | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Turnout | 80.71% ( 1.46pp)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Panchayat elections were held in the Indian state ofWest Bengal in July 2023.[2] It was held by theWest Bengal State Election Commission. The results were announced on 11 July 2023.
The election schedule was announced by the State Election Commission of West Bengal on 8 June 2023.[3]
| Poll Event | Schedule |
|---|---|
| Notification Date | 9 June 2023 |
| Last Date for filing nomination | 15 June 2023 |
| Last Date for Withdrawal of nomination | 20 June 2023 |
| Date of Poll | 8 July 2023 |
| Date of Counting of Votes | 11 July 2023 |
80.71 percent of the total voters exercised their franchise in the three-tierpanchayat elections, according to theWest Bengal State Election Commission.[4] The re-poll in 600 booths where voting had to be suspended due to violence is scheduled to be held on 10 July 2023.[4]
Between 8 June and 16 July 2023 a total of 55 people died due to panchayat poll violence in the state.
On 8 July 2023, 12 persons died due to election-day violence. On 9 July 2023, six more deaths were reported,[4] increasing the death toll to 18 on the election day. The dead included 10Trinamool Congress supporters, four from theIndian National Congress, two from theBharatiya Janata Party and two from theCommunist Party of India (Marxist).[4]
On 11 July 2023, result day late night in Bhangar, South 24 parganas there were gunshots and huge bombings killing 3.
"Murder of democracy in West Bengal under the TMC govt. Over 60 dead & 100s injured in the local body elections. Strongly condemn. Strengthen popular resistance to save democracy in Bengal & in India," said Sitaram Yechury, National Secretary, Communist Party of India (Marxist), condemning the alleged rigging in elections by the ruling party.
| Political parties | Popular votes | % of votes | Gram Panchayat | Panchayat Samiti | Zilla Parishad | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trinamool Congress | 20,942,380 | 51.14% | 35,606 | 6,560 | 877 | |
| Bharatiya Janata Party | 9,467,540 | 22.92% | 9,990 | 1,044 | 31 | |
| Sanjukta Morcha[a] | 9,565,359 | 23.02% | 6,822 | 459 | 17 | |
| Others | 1,081,673 | 2.84% | 2,972 | 301 | 1 | |
Corporation Election Data Published by StateElection Commission ofWest Bengal[5]
| No. | Zilla Parishad | Total Seats | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AITC | BJP | Sanjukta Morcha | Others | |||||
| CPI(M) | INC | ISF | ||||||
| 1 | Cooch Behar | 34 | 32 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2 | Alipurduar | 18 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 3 | Jalpaiguri | 24 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 4 | Uttar Dinajpur | 26 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Dakshin Dinajpur | 21 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 6 | Malda | 43 | 34 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Murshidabad | 78 | 71 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Nadia | 52 | 46 | 6 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 9 | North 24 Parganas | 66 | 66 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 10 | South 24 Parganas | 85 | 84 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 11 | Howrah | 42 | 42 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 12 | Hooghly | 53 | 51 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 13 | Purba Bardhaman | 66 | 66 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 14 | Paschim Bardhaman | 18 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 15 | Birbhum | 52 | 51 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | Purba Medinipur | 70 | 56 | 14 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 17 | Paschim Medinipur | 60 | 60 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 18 | Jhargram | 19 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 19 | Purulia | 45 | 42 | 2 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 20 | Bankura | 56 | 55 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 928 | 879 | 31 | 2 | 14 | 1 | 1 | |
TheTrinamool Congress won a landslide victory in the panchayat election, winning 100 per cent of Zilla Parishads, 92 per cent Panchayat Samitis and 80 per cent Gram Panchayats.[6][7]
TheBharatiya Janata Party secured a second position in these polls and performed well in North Bengal.[8]
TheSanjukta Morcha alliance came third in these local bodies elections.[9] TheISF especially performed well in the areas where it contested, winning almost 50% of the seats contested.[10] TheLeft Front andINC also performed well in the Muslim-dominatedMalda division.[9] Most notablyLeft Front pushedBharatiya Janata Party to third spot in theBurdwan division after a long time since 2016.
