West Bengal Panchayat Elections 2023: The voting for panchayat polls in West Bengal is under way. The voting is being held in a single phase. Around 5.67 crore voters are likely to exercise their franchise to choose representatives for nearly 928 seats across 22 zilla parishads, 9,730 panchayat samities, and 63,229 gram panchayat seats. The pre-poll status in the panchayats of the state saw massive violent episodes and the deaths of some. The polls are likely to see a fierce tussle for control of local administrations between the ruling Trinamool Congress, Indian Secular Front and the Bharatiya Janata Party and will be a litmus test for both parties ahead of next year's Lok Sabha elections. In 2018, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) won uncontested, 34 per cent of the seats in panchayat elections, which also saw various instances of violence. Stay with TOI for all the latest updates