Press Statement
The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:
On Victory In Panchayat Elections In West Bengal
The Left Front is headed for a sweeping victory in the three-tier panchayat elections in West Bengal. The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) congratulates the West Bengal state committee of the Party and the Left Front for this splendid victory. For the sixth time in succession, the rural people of West Bengal have massively endorsed the Left Front's performance in the panchayat system.
The results of the zilla parishads and panchayat samities have been announced. The Left Front has won 84.5 per cent of the total number of zilla parishad seats and has got a majority in fifteen out of the seventeen districts. For the panchayat samity seats, the Left Front has won 74 per cent of the total seats and a majority in 283 out of the 329 panchayat samity bodies. As results of the gram panchayat elections are coming in, it is evident that the CPI(M) and the Left Front are heading for a decisive win at this level too.
The massive Left Front victory has been achieved in the face of a combined onslaught by the Trinamul Congress-BJP combine and the Congress to dislodge it from its dominant position in the panchayats. The most heinous methods, including the killing of CPI(M) cadres, were resorted to. During the entire election campaign, upto the day after the polling, 26 CPI(M) workers and supporters were killed. Yet, there was an orchestrated campaign by the opposition parties and a section of media against the CPI(M)'s so-called reign of terror.
The Trinamul-BJP alliance has been routed in these elections with the Trinamul Congress having collapsed as a party in some parts of the state. It is this reality which motivated the false charges against the CPI(M) and the Left Front during the election campaign.
The Polit Bureau notes that there were some problems in coming to a full agreement between some of the Left Front partners. It is essential that the Left unity be strengthened given the unstinted support given by the people to the Front.