Suri: In Birbhum there are two gram panchayats, not far from each other, where the BJP and Trinamul won because of alleged factional feuds.

The Mayureswar gram panchayat in Mayureswar-II block, which was controlled by the BJP since 2008, was bagged by Trinamul this year while the neighbouring Ganpur gram panchayat in Mohammedbazar block, where Trinamul was in power over the past 10 years, has been won by the BJP.

Local Trinamul leaders in Mohammedbazar and BJP leaders in Mayureswar are now blaming internal feud as the reason behind the defeats.

In Ganpur gram panchayat, BJP won six seats out of seven. In Mayureswar gram panchayat where BJP was in power, Trinamul won 10 seats out 12.

In case of Ganpur gram panchayat, there was a party's infighting between the Trinamul block president Goutam Mondal and the former gram panchayat chief Subhranshu Chowdhury, who switched over to BJP last year.

In 2014, Chowdhury was removed from the pradhan's post after Mondal's followers brought a no-confidence motion against him.

"I was with Trinamul till 2017 even after the block president (Mondal) conspired to remove me from the chair of the gram panchayat chief and I was sidelined in the party. As I could not work for the people under the circumstances, I joined the BJP last year. I am happy that people's mandate was against Trinamul," said Subhranshu Chowdhury, the BJP leader in Ganpur who led the party there in this panchayat election.

Gautam Mondal however could not be contacted as his mobile phone was switched off.

However, Anubrata Mondal, the district Trinamul chief, told The Telegraph: "The two parties backed a third party and as a result, the third party bagged the panchayat."

Sources said that in case of Mayureswar gram panchayat, there was an infighting within BJP following rivalry between the former district president Dudh Kumar Mondal and his successor Ramkrishna Roy.

BJP insiders said that as Dudh Kumar is a strong force in Mayureswar, the team of present chief Roy stayed away from campaigning. Also, Dudh Kumar stayed away from campaigning other seats and only campaigned for his own seat in Mayureswar gram panchayat from which he has won.

Roy, district president of BJP in Birbhum said: "It is a false allegation against the leadership. We gave the same importance to Mayureswar like other gram panchayats. We lost because of lapses of the local leadership."#