KMC elections likely to be held in mid April: Official sources

The elections to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and 107 other civic bodies of West Bengal are likely to be held in mid April, official sources said.

The state government is keen on holding the elections between April 12-26, they said.

"The suggested dates for KMC elections is April 12 whereas the date for elections to 107 other municipalities across the state is April 26. Nothing has been finalised but discussions are on over completing the election process by April," a senior official said.

Suggestions have been made that elections for Bidhanagar and Durgapur municipal corporations be held after October, he said.

These elections are being tipped as "mini assembly polls" ahead of the crucial 2021 assembly polls in West Bengal.

The Trinamool Congress is in power in most of the 108 civic bodies where elections are due.

The BJP has demanded deployment of central forces for free and fair municipal elections.

"The state police personnel has turned into cadres of TMC. We want deployment of central forces for free and fair elections," state BJP vice president Jaiparkash Majumdar said.

Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs and senior Trinamool leader Tapas Roy said his party would make a clean sweep in the polls as it has done a lot of development work.

West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee has convened a meeting with chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of party-run municipal bodies on February 20 to finalise TMC's strategy for the civic polls.