Silchar Municipal Corporation Polls: 159 Nominations Filed Across 42 Wards

The first-ever election to the Silchar Municipal Corporation (SMC) has entered the next stage with 159 nomination papers submitted across 42 wards, while the candidate list currently contains 151 contestants.

The nomination process concluded on September 11, setting the stage for the October 3 civic polls. The election will be the first after the erstwhile Silchar Municipal Board was upgraded into a full-fledged municipal corporation.

Polling will be held from 7:30 am to 4 pm on October 3, while counting of votes will begin at 8 am on October 6.

The 42 wards cover the newly expanded limits of the corporation. The election will determine Silchar’s first elected Mayor and City Council.

BJP-AGP alliance contests all 42 wards

The BJP-led NDA alliance is contesting all 42 wards. The BJP has fielded candidates in 38 wards, while its alliance partner Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) is contesting four wards: Ward Nos. 16, 24, 25 and 26.

The Indian National Congress has also fielded candidates in all 42 wards.

Apart from the two major political camps, the contest includes candidates from the Raijor Dal, CPI(M), SUCI, Samajwadi Party and a large number of Independents.

Several wards have multiple Independent candidates, potentially making the contests more fragmented.

Ward No. 18 has the highest number of listed candidates at six, while Ward Nos. 8, 20, 23, 33, 35 and 36 have two candidates each.

159 nominations submitted

According to the nomination details, 151 candidates are currently listed across the 42 wards, against 159 nomination papers submitted.

The difference indicates that eight additional nomination papers were submitted beyond the number of candidates currently reflected in the list. The final contesting candidate list will depend on the scrutiny and subsequent withdrawal process.

The last elected board of the erstwhile Silchar Municipal Board was dissolved in April 2020. Since then, the town has been administered through appointed authorities while the process of boundary delimitation and transition to the municipal corporation was carried out.

The October 3 election will therefore mark a significant change in Silchar’s civic administration, with voters choosing representatives for the newly formed 42-ward corporation for the first time.

The final list of candidates will be clearer after the completion of the scrutiny and withdrawal stages.