KOLKATA: The ruling Trinamool Congress looks set to retain power in KMC for the third consecutive term, with its candidates leading in 112 wards and winning 13 seats that went to polls, while BJP nominees were ahead in five wards, SEC officials said on Tuesday.
Counting of votes for 144 wards of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) began this morning at 8 am.
"As per the trends, the TMC has taken the lead in 112 wards and has won 13 seats. The BJP is leading in five wards, while the CPI(M) and the Congress are leading in one ward each," the State Election Commission official said.
TMC candidate in ward number 117, Amit Singh, and Kakoli Bag in ward number 119 have emerged victorious, data on the SEC website showed.
Lok Sabha MP and five-time councillor Mala Roy retained her seat in ward number 88 for the sixth consecutive time, and TMC MLA and sitting councillor Debashis Kumar also won in ward number 85.
TMC MLA and sitting councillor Atin Ghosh was leading in ward number 11 in north Kolkata.
In ward number 13, the party's Anindya Routh was ahead of others.
The BJP is leading in ward number 22, 23, 41, 42 and 50 and the Congress in ward number 45.
The CPI(M) is leading in ward number 103.
The KMC is divided into 144 administrative wards, which are grouped into 16 boroughs.
Sporadic incidents of violence, including hurling of bombs at two booths, marred the KMC elections on Sunday, even as over 63 per cent of the nearly 40.5 lakh voters exercised their franchise.
The TMC has been in power in KMC since 2010.
In the last KMC polls in 2015, it had won 124 seats, whereas the Left Front bagged 13.
The BJP and the Congress had secured five and two seats, respectively.