Kolkata: Sixty-six out of 209 seats in KMC elections are likely to be reserved for women and 12 for scheduled caste candidates, shows a draft of reserved seats, published by the district magistrate of South 24 Parganas, the authority who conducts civic polls.The draft list will be sent to all recognised political parties, which will have till Sept 30 to file claims and objections.After delimitation, the number of KMC wards will increase from the current 144 to 209.A state official said the authorities planned the seat distribution based on the census data of 2011, when Kolkata’s population was 44.9 lakh. “Among the total population recorded in 2011, 5.7% people belonged to scheduled castes. The reservation of seats is based on that number,” said the official. Among those 12 seats reserved for SC candidates, four would be set aside for women, the draft list said. “One-third of the rest of the 209 seats will have to be set aside for woman candidates,” he said, adding that no seat was being reserved for a scheduled tribe (ST) candidate as the percentage of ST population in Kolkata was negligible.The draft list specifies the possible ward numbers for reserved seats. According to the draft, women could be fielded from areas, like Cossipore, Shyampukur, Chowringee, Entally, Ballygunge, Kasba, Jadavpur and Behala and SC candidates from Cossipore, Maniktala, Beleghata, Kasba and Behala.In the now-dissolved KMC council, which had 144 wards, women were councillors in over 65 wards. Mala Roy, former chairperson of the last council, said the figure was more than the reserved number of seats. “Many women won from unreserved seats,” Roy told TOI.Officials pointed out that one-third of seats in an urban local body and panchayat elections had been reserved for women since the 74th and 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992, respectively. But the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections still did not have seats reserved for women, said a DM.According to the law, SC-ST reserved seats should be in areas with a significant SC-ST population, not any ward, said an official. “There is a roster, listing wards with a concentration of SC population and those are reserved for the category by rotation. Similarly, seats for women are reserved by rotation. A seat reserved in one election becomes unreserved in the next election,” said an official.Declining to comment on his objections to the draft list, if any, BJP MLA Ritesh Tiwari, also co-convener of BJP for KMC elections, said, “The party will sit together and study the draft list.” Also refusing to comment, Baiswanor Chattopadhyay, a former councillor and Mamata All India Trinamool Congress functionary, said they were now busy with the process of obtaining a new symbol and name for the party on Friday.The claims and objections, if any, will be addressed to DM South 24 Parganas, also the district municipal election officer.
