West Bengal govt to appoint coordinators if civic polls not cancelled, says CM Adhikari

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. File | Photo credit: PTI

The West Bengal government will appoint coordinators in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and Howrah Municipal Corporation departments unless the Supreme Court lifts the stay on the civic polls, West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said on Thursday (Nov 12, 2026).

The Calcutta High Court on October 6 barred the West Bengal State Election Commission from issuing any notification for the upcoming KMC elections based on the newly redrawn constituencies until a pending petition challenging the delimitation exercise is decided.

Addressing a rally in Howrah district, Mr. Adhikari accused opposition parties of obstructing the electoral process and claimed that residents had been deprived of elected civic representation and proper municipal services for years.

“Those who are likely to lose their election bonds are those who are obstructing the process,” the chief minister said. He said that similar to the proposal in the KMC, coordinators will be appointed for each ward in the Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC) if the elections are not held on time. According to sources, BJP leaders are likely to be appointed as coordinators across KMC and HMC.

Mr. Adhikari said his government would approach the Supreme Court with a Special Leave Petition (SLP) to lift the ban on holding civic polls. According to the chief, officials have limitations and cannot provide civic amenities in the long term.

Elections to the HMC have not been held since 2013, and for almost a decade, officials have been providing services to people from the civic body. The Trinamool Congress board of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation was dissolved weeks after the Bharatiya Janata Party government came to power. KMC Mayor Firhad Hakim and other members of the council resigned and the state government appointed an administrator to manage the affairs of the largest civic body in the state.

The Calcutta High Court on Friday (Oct 6, 2026) restrained the West Bengal State Election Commission from issuing any notification for the upcoming Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) elections based on the newly redrawn constituencies until a pending petition challenging the delimitation exercise is decided.

The West Bengal government passed legislation in the State Assembly on 12 August that redrawn the departments of the KMC and HMC, increasing the number of departments from 144 to 209 and 50 to 68 respectively. Opposition parties have accused the state government and its agencies of resorting to gerrymandering in carrying out delimitation of constituencies to ensure partisan advantage to the ruling political party in West Bengal based on previous election results.

The BJP government in West Bengal was interested in holding the KMC and HMC elections. In fact, the BJP leadership has started the process of selecting candidates. Mr Adhikari has on several occasions expressed his preference to hold the elections to the Kolkata and Howrah civic bodies by the end of November or the beginning of December this year.

Published – 13 Nov 2026 05:44 IST