Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim defeats BJP's Jiban Sen with over 13,000 votes in local body by-election

Kolkata: West Bengal minister and city mayor, Firhad Hakim, Wednesday registered a resounding victory in the by-election to a KMC ward by defeating his nearest BJP rival by a margin of 13,987 votes. Hakim, TMC’s candidate for by-poll to Ward 82 of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), secured 16,564 votes whereas his nearest rival of BJP’s Jiban Sen secured 2,577 votes. [caption id=“attachment_4879201” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. AFP[/caption] While Sisir Dutta from the CPI secured 1,735 votes, Congress candidate Animesh Bhattacharya secured 537 votes. “This is a victory of the people. I want to thank the masses. The TMC-run KMC would work for the development of the masses,” Hakim said after the results were announced. Hakim, the state’s Urban Development and Municipal Affairs Minister, had been elected as the Mayor of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) on 3 December by the KMC councillors, although Hakim himself was not a councillor then. According to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation Act, which was amended in the winter session of the Assembly, a mayor would have to get elected by voters as a councillor within six months of being appointed to the post. Election to the mayoral post became imperative following the resignation of Sovan Chatterjee from the post in November last year. Chatterjee, who was also the housing and fire services minister, had resigned from the state Cabinet on 20 November and from the post of KMC Mayor on 22 November.