Kolkata: West Bengal Governor, Jagdeep Dhankar, on Wednesday, returned the bill for separating Bally from Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC) seeking clarification on 18 points.
In the last assembly session, a resolution was passed to separate the wards under the earlier Bally Municipality from HMC. The bill was passed by a majority. Then the bill was sent to the office of the governor for clearance.
However, the governor not only refused to clear the bill but also sent back the bill to the state government seeking 18-point clarification.
In absence of the governor’s clearance, the erstwhile Bally municipality cannot be separated from HMC. So in such a situation separate polls for Bally Municipality and HMC will not be possible.
Also read: Conduct polls for all local civic bodies on the same day: Dhankar writes to SEC
The state government is willing to conduct the polls for HMC and Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) on December 19, 2021. So the state election commission was waiting for the governor’s nod on this count. In such a situation, the fresh move by the governor poses uncertainty for HMC polls on that day.
