A triangular contest is expected in the November 27 Urban Local Body (ULB) elections in Tripura, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appearing to be in an advantageous position after its candidates won 77 seats unopposed, officials said on Wednesday

Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Jitendra Chaudhury said that the Left Front, comprising the CPI-M, CPI, Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), All India Forward Bloc and CPI-ML, would continue its united political fight against the BJP in the ULB elections despite failing to reach a seat-sharing arrangement with the Congress.

The CPI-M and the Congress had made efforts to contest the November 27 ULB elections jointly.

However, a series of inconclusive meetings between the two parties failed to yield any positive outcome, and they could not arrive at an electoral understanding.

Leaders of both the Left Front and the Congress have been accusing each other of being responsible for the failure to reach an electoral understanding.

With BJP candidates having won 77 seats unopposed in eight municipal bodies, polling will now be held in 268 seats across 16 Urban Local Bodies in the state out of a total of 345 seats in 21 ULBs.

A senior Tripura State Election Commission (SEC) official said that, as no Opposition or other political parties had fielded candidates in 65 seats across five municipal bodies -- Kamalpur in Dhalai district, Santir Bazar in South Tripura district, and Ranir Bazar, Jirania and Mohanpur in West Tripura district -- all 65 BJP candidates had been declared elected unopposed.

This has enabled the BJP to secure full control of these five urban local bodies without a contest.

Besides these 65 seats, BJP candidates also won 12 more seats unopposed in three other municipal bodies -- Ambassa in Dhalai district, Teliamura in Khowai district and Bishalgarh in Sepahijala district.

The SEC official added that following the conclusion of the withdrawal of candidature process on Tuesday afternoon, a total of 733 candidates remained in the fray for the 268 seats in 16 Urban Local Bodies spread across the state's eight districts, including the Agartala Municipal Corporation (AMC).

The Agartala Municipal Corporation alone accounts for 51 seats, making it the largest urban local body in the state.

Of the total 733 candidates contesting the November 27 elections, the BJP has the highest number of nominees, with 265 candidates remaining in the fray.

The CPI-M has fielded 228 candidates, while the Congress has 201 candidates.

The BJP's ally, the Tipra Motha Party (TMP), has fielded 10 candidates, while 29 Independent and other candidates are also contesting the elections.

The SEC official also said that the terms of all 21 Urban Local Bodies in Tripura, including the Agartala Municipal Corporation, are scheduled to expire on December 9.

Of the total 345 seats in the 21 Urban Local Bodies, 162 have been reserved for women.

In addition, 80 seats have been reserved for candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes (SCs), while nine seats have been reserved for candidates from the Scheduled Tribes (STs).

The counting of votes for the November 27 elections will be taken up on December 2.