Trinamul Congress (TMC) is all set to register a landslide victory in the West Bengal three-tier Panchayat elections with the BJP and the CPM being distant second and third.

Out of a total of 928 seats in Zilla Prishad, the TMC has so far won 740 seats while the BJP and CPIM and Congress got 28 and 3 and 11 seats respectively, according to the last information available from the State Election Commission.

In Panchayat Samity, out of a total of 9,730 seats, the TMC has got 7,128 seats while the BJP got 1002 seats. The CPM and the Congress got 175 and 258 seats, respectively. Others have got 170 seats.

In Gram Panchayat out of 63, 229 seats, Trinamul Congress got 42, 467 seats while the BJP got 9738 seats. The Congress and the CPM got 2,975 and 2,544 seats, respectively. Others including ISF got 2,588 seats. There is tie in 333 seats.

Political experts said the mass contact programme of Abhishek Banerjee, national general secretary of the Trinamul Congress, has paid rich dividend to the party. He had conducted the programme for 51 days, starting from Dinhata in Cooch Behar district and ending it at Kakdweep in south 24 parganas.

This is for the first time when rural people selected their candidates for the three-tier Panchayat, namely, Gram Panchayat, Panchayat Samity and Zilla Parishad.

In North Bengal, where the TMC does not have any Lok Sabha member, the BJP has completely failed to save their bastion. In Junglemahal, Bankura and Purulia supposed to be BJP stronghold as it has the MPs, the party has been washed away.

Political experts said the welfare schemes taken by the Trinamul-led state government like Lakshir Bhandar has won the hearts of the women who are getting Rs 500 for general caste and Rs 1000 for those belonging to SC and ST categories. The issuance of Swasthya Sathi cadres and caste certificates through Duare Sarkar camps have established confidence of the rural people in the government.

After 2008 Panchayat elections, the Trinamul bagged the Zilla Parishad in east Midnapore and south 24 parganas. The party started concentrating on its organization. Over the year, the Trinamul Congress has created a sound organization up to the block level and Abhishek Banerjee is in touch with the booth level workers and leaders.

On other hand, the organization of the BJP, the CPM and the Congress are fast vanishing. For example, in Gram Panchayat where there are 63,229 seats, the opposition has got 17, 845 seats only. In Panchayat Samity, out of 9,730 seats, the Opposition got 1,605 seats only while in Zilla Paridhad, out of 928 seats, the opposition got only 42 seats.

The political experts said if the Opposition wants to put up a fight against the Trinamul Congress in 2024 LOk Sabha election, they will have to increase the organizational strength. Instead of criticising the Trinamul Congress, they should come up with alternate development policy.

In rural belt, the TMC, during its campaign, very successfully convinced people that the BJP has not given their dues for the past two years. Fifty senior level Trinamul leaders were involved to campaign in the rural belt and their collective effort has brought success to the party.