Kolkata, Nov 16 (TIWN) There are strong indications within the Trinamool Congress that former Union minister Babul Supriyo, who recently quit the BJP and joined the Trinamool, might become the Mayor candidate and the face of the party in the forthcoming elections to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) scheduled on December 19.

Though there has been no official confirmation on this yet, according to party insiders, Supriyo is the 'most favourite' among the candidates for the post because he is preferred by Trinamool's all-India General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee, who is the main decision maker in the party at present.

There are several other indications that make Supriyo the frontrunner in the race. The party recently announced the 'one man, one post' policy, which puts outgoing Mayor Firhad Hakim out of the race. Chandrima Bhattacharyay was also considered for the post, but after Amit Mitra decided not to continue as the Finance Minister of the state, Bhattacharyay has been made Minister of State for Finance.  Initially, it was thought that Supriyo would be nominated to the Rajya Sabha. But by nominating Sushmita Dev and former Goa Chief Minister Luizinho Falerio to the Upper House, the party has made it obvious that it is not thinking of Supriyo for national politics.