Increasingly almost every election result day in Bengal is starting to have an air of familiarity. A complete annihilation of the opposition by the ruling TMC. a mirror image of how the state used to vote for the Left just around a decade back. Yet, every result gives some vital cues about the changing political dynamics of the state - the gradual tightening of the noose by the ruling party, a complete desertion of the opposite ranks and BJP's slow but steady emergence as the main opposition party. 

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The municipal polls was significant as it wasn't only confined to TMC's stronghold of South Bengal. While Pujali is in South 24 Parganas, Domkal is in Murshidabad and Raigunj is in North Dinajpur. Elections were also held for Darjeeling, Kurseog, Kalimpong and Mirik - the four municipalities in hills. The result must come as an assurance for Mamata Banerjee at a time when the party is badly hit by Saradha scam and Narada sting. Despite all the extraneous problems and top leaders rotting in jail, Mamata Banerjee remains the most popular politician in the state. TMC easing to victory in Domkal and Raigunj- both stronghold of the Left and Congress shows opposition's clout and morale is in all-time low. Raigunj- the home of Priyaranjan Das Munsi and currently having Left MP in Mohd Salim witnessed an one-way street with TMC winning 24 out of 27. Even the sitting mayor of Congress failed to get re-elected. 

In Pujali, TMC got 12 out of 16 seats. BJP opened its account winning 1. In Domkal - a stronghold of state Congress chief Adhir Chowdhury, the grand old party failed miserably. It won 1 out of 21, Left won 2 and TMC romped home winning 18 out of 21. The 2 Left councillors immediately decided to join TMC after the election results. 

But the most significant result came from the tiny hill municipality of Mirik. TMC won 6 out of 9, the first time a party from the plains of Bengal made a dent in the hills in last 35 years. While GJM has comfortably won in Darjeeling, Kurseog, Kalimpong, TMC has won seats in each of the municipalities. For 10 years, GJM has been a unbeatable force in the hills after Bimal Gurung emerged as the tallest leader of the Gorkhas . The green-shoots of TMC shows that the discourse is gradually shifting. It is testament to Mamata Banerjee's massive outreach in the hills. And there lies a deeper significance, much more than the mundane equation of victory and defeat in elections. The hills for long have felt neglected by the politicians from plains, giving legitimacy to the demand for Gorkhaland.

Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) celebrate their victory after winning in the local municipal elections in Kurseong (AFP)

Didi reached out to them, launched a number of schemes and started a sustained channel of communication between plains and hills. Forming new district of Kalimpong was another indication of how serious Mamata was about development of hills. Not only Gorkhas, she empowered other indigenous tribes of the hills thus recalibrating the delicate power equation in the hilly region of Bengal. The electoral results aptly reflects the leg-work done by Mamata Banerjee in the hills over last six years. 

BJP in this election have opened their account in Raigunj. They have won 2 in Pujali, to emerge as the second largest party in the municipality. But overall despite buzz in the social media, the party has failed to transfer it offline. It is an indictment of the poor leadership and lack of ground level consolidation of the saffron party-which no amount of short trips by Amit Shah can offset. Like Mamata Banerjee grinded her way through against the Left, BJP needs to plan with a coherent blue-print to slowly elbow-out TMC. Merely trending hashtags will not help in real electoral battlefield. With Modi wave still going strong, the BJP has a chance of  being a serious challenger to TMC or just remain an also-ran. The next year's Panchayat polls will offer an insight to saffron party's destiny in the state for the near future. 

The opposition's sole claim during this election has been accusations against TMC claiming they were using muscle power to intimidate voters and have resorted to vote loot. 

 While such allegations may have a grain of truth, the fact remains the opposition has failed to form a coherent narrative and rock-solid organisation to counter TMC's well-oiled cadre base. It has solely relied on anti-Mamata rhetoric without giving any alternative vision for development. Didi is going from strength to strength by focussing on ensuring  that development projects reach the have-nots of the society. The common people as of now can't care less for all the corruption allegations levelled against the ruling party. It's time for opposition to understand this ground reality and tailor their content.