A CORRESPONDENT
DIBRUGARH: Three contenders are in the race for the post of Dibrugarh Municipal Board (DMB) chairman. The contenders are- Ujjal Phukan, Gautam Dutta and Dr. Saikat Patra.
Ujjal Phukan, contested from ward no. 11 and defeated Independent candidate Rakesh Kr. Shah with a margin of 304 votes while Dr Saikat Patra, contested from ward no. 14 and defeated Independent candidate Shyamal Das with a margin of 1624 votes. Gautam Dutta won uncontested from ward no 1.
According to sources, Gautam Dutta is the preferred candidate for DMB chairman of Dibrugarh MLA Prasanta Phukan. The MLA wants Dutta to become chairman because he had given him the ticket from ward no 1.
"Dutta is loyal to Prasanta Phukan and MLA Phukan wants him to become chairman. Very soon Prasanta Phukan will place his list for the chairman of DMB. Prasanta Phukan does not want Ujjal Phukan to become chairman because he is from Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal's camp," said a BJP source.
Sources added that Dr Saikat Patra has maintained a good relationship with everyone and he is not in any camp. Leading citizens of Dibrugarh support him to become the DMB chairman. A section of RSS workers are supporting Dr Saikat Patra to become the chairman of DMB.
"It is very tough to speculate who will become the DMB chairman but we need a good chairman who can run the DMB smoothly for five years. Last time, we saw that the DMB run by the BJP could not complete the five-year term and was dissolved. We need a good DMB which will work for the development of Dibrugarh town," said a Dibrugarh resident.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday secured a thumping victory by bagging 21 seats out of 22 wards in Dibrugarh Municipal elections. The lone candidate from Congress, Samsun Nahar Hussain Ahmed won ward no. 10. Dibrugarh Muncipal Board (DMB), the oldest civic body in Assam, was set up in 1873 during the British rule. FC Henrike, an Englishman, became the first chairperson of DMB.
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