Women Set to Play Pivotal Role in Tripuras Upcoming Urban Local Body Elections
In Tripuras urban local body elections, women voters and candidates are expected to play a significant role, with over half of the electorate being female.
Agartala, November 13 (Daily Kiran) : Women are poised to have a significant impact in the upcoming Urban Local Body (ULB) elections in Tripura, scheduled for November 27. More than half of the total voters are women, and the number of female candidates is nearly equal to that of their male counterparts.
According to an official from the State Election Commission (SEC), approximately 570,000 voters are eligible to cast their ballots across eight districts in the state, with women constituting over 50% of this number. The final voter list for the 21 ULBs indicates a gender ratio of 1,044 women for every 1,000 men.
A total of 810 candidates have filed nominations for the 345 seats across the 21 ULBs, including the Agartala Municipal Corporation (AMC). Of these candidates, 403 are women, while 407 are men. The Agartala Municipal Corporation, which has been in existence for 155 years, consists of 51 seats, with 25 reserved for women.
Out of the total 345 seats in the 21 ULBs, 162 are reserved for women, while 80 seats are designated for Scheduled Caste (SC) candidates and 9 for Scheduled Tribe (ST) candidates. The Agartala Municipal Council, later upgraded to a municipal corporation, was established in 1871 during the reign of Maharaja Chandra Manikya.
In the lead-up to the elections, candidates from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have already won 77 seats uncontested in eight ULBs, allowing the party to gain complete control over these areas. In total, BJP candidates have been declared elected without opposition in 65 seats across five ULBs, including Kamalpur in Dhalai district and Rani Bazar in West Tripura.
Following the conclusion of the nomination withdrawal process on November 10, there are now 733 candidates remaining in the fray for the 268 seats across 16 ULBs, including the Agartala Municipal Corporation. The BJP leads with 265 candidates, while the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has fielded 228 candidates, and the Congress has 201.
Opposition leaders from CPI(M) and Congress have alleged that candidates from the ruling party have intimidated opposition candidates and their proposers to deter them from participating in the elections. Reports of assaults on CPI(M) members and candidates have emerged, highlighting tensions leading up to the vote.
The counting of votes for the elections will take place on December 2.
