Congress holds the edge in Mangaldai civic polls

 From our Correspondent

 MANGALDAI, January 24: With the civic polls in Assam scheduled for February 9, all the candidates in the 10 wards of Mangaldai Municipality Board (MMB) are preparing for the polls. Significantly, the Congress is ahead of other political parties in the poll preparations.     Of the 10 wards, Ward No 1 has been reserved for Scheduled Caste (SC) and Ward No. 2 for SC (Woman) while Wards No. 4, 5, 6 and 7 have been reserved for women candidates and Wards No. 3, 8, 9 and 10 have been kept open for all.     In view of the alleged corruption and irregularities committed at the behest of certain ward commissioners of the previous body of MMB, the conscious circles in the district headquarters town here have expressed keen interest in electing new faces with a clean image. Keeping this in mind, the Congress is likely to field new faces in all the 10 wards.

 According to party sources, the Congress is planning to project popular new faces with clean image, including former AASU activist, sports organizer and woman activist. Prominent aspirants for the Congress nomition are woman activist and daughter of a prominent freedom fighter, Bharati Das in Ward No. 2, Youth Congress activist Rakesh Barua in Ward No. 8, former AASU activist, cultural organizer and actor Krishnendu Deka in Ward No. 9 and former secretary of Mangaldai Sports Association (MSA) and well known sports organizer Pratap Bordoloi and former Ward Commissioner Dalimi Saharia in Ward No. 10. Congress, under the leadership of new Cabinet Minister Basanta Das, is going to battle for supremacy with new faces.  The Congress candidates are also likely to enjoy the advantage of the development and welfare activities initiated by Minister Basanta Das in the district headquarters town as well as in Mangaldai LAC. The recent upgradation and inclusion of Basanta Das in the cabinet is also likely to impact the civic poll this time, added party sources.

  On the contrary, other political parties mainly the BJP and the AGP are reportedly facing the crisis of suitable candidates in this civic poll. The AGP, which once was able to earn the reputation of having strongholds in Mangaldai town since the All Assam Students’ Union led Assam Movement, has, however, lost its grip with the lack of workers in the grassroots level. In a blow to the AGP, former vice–president of MMB and a dedicated AGP activist, Swapan Kumar Ghosh has scrapped his 30 years long association with the AGP and resigned from the primary membership of the party. Former chairman of MMB, Paran Kumar Das will contest from Ward No. 10.

    At the same time, the BJP office bearers are avoiding the media on this civic poll. However, the BJP is trying to project former AGP activist Swapan Kumar Ghosh as its candidate in Ward No. 3. Though the Badaruddin Ajmal–led AIUDF has domited the Darrang Zila Parishad, yet the AIUDF is not likely to field any candidates in the civic polls.

  Rupali Das, the chairperson of the dissolved MMB will contest as an independent candidate from Ward No. 4. Her husband and a popular person of Mangaldai, Subrata Das will also contest from Ward No. 3 as an independent candidate.