People's Democracy

WOMEN ELECTED TO TOP PORTFOLIOS  AT THE HOWRAH MUNICIPAL CORPORATION

IN an unprecedented instance, all three leading portfolios of the Howrah Municipal Corporation have been filled up by women councillors, representing the CPI(M) and the Left Front. The elected are Mamta Jaiswal who is the new mayor of the industrial township, Swapna Bhattacharya who shall be the new chairperson, and Kaveri Moitra who will be the deputy mayor.

Biman Basu, LF chairman, and CPI(M) Polit Bureau member, described the achievement as certainly unprecedented in an urban civic body, perhaps in the country. Dipak Dasgupta of the state secretariat of the CPI(M) who is also a former secretary of Howrah unit of the Party focussed important attention to the fact that of the 27 women candidates put up by the CPI(M) and the Bengal Left Front, 19 won, a success rate of 70 per cent.

Both Biman Basu and Dipak Dasgupta pointed out that the percentage of women in the 33 seats won in all by the CPI(M) and the Left Front at this year�s Howrah civic elections, was a whopping 57 per cent.

In his brief address, Biman Basu called upon the CPI(M) and Left Front workers, in the wake of the political triumph in a tough situation, to widen the Left�s influence especially among those who �are our class allies but have been misled into voting against us.� He also pointed out that the victory was one that tore apart the illusion of control of money, muscle, and media malign.

�We must,� the CPI(M) leader underscored, �especially keep in our thoughts and acts the people who belonged to the poorest of the poor as we go on doing our assigned jobs for the further improvement of Howrah�s amenities, especially with the conurbation growing in size everyday and building activities taking place at a hectic, nearly furious, pace, keeping with the times.� Present at the victory rally was the leadership of the Howrah CPI(M) and the Howrah Left Front.

(B P)