Congress and Left Grapple with Alliance Decision for Bengal Polls
West Bengal's political landscape presents a difficult puzzle for the Congress and CPI(M)-led Left Front. Both parties face a crucial decision about forming an alliance for the upcoming Assembly elections. The electoral battle in Bengal has largely become a direct contest between the ruling Trinamool Congress and the main opposition BJP in recent years.
Internal Divisions Within Congress
A significant section of the state Congress believes the party should contest alone in the March-April elections. These leaders argue that political expediency should take a backseat to long-term organizational revival. State Congress president Subhankar Sarkar reportedly supports this solo approach.
"The Congress flag and symbol have been absent from two-thirds of Bengal's constituencies for over two decades," explained a senior state party leader. "How can we expect party growth in such conditions? We must make difficult decisions for long-term interests."
The Congress last contested over 100 seats in Bengal during the 2006 Assembly elections. Historical data reveals a pattern of declining performance:
- 1996: Contested 288 seats, won 82 with 39.48% vote share
- 2001: Alliance with TMC, contested 60 seats, won 26
- 2006: Contested alone in 262 seats, won just 21
- 2011: Alliance with TMC, contested 66 seats, won 42 with 9% vote share
- 2016: Alliance with Left, contested 92 seats, won 44 with 12.25% vote share
- 2021: Alliance with Left, contested 92 seats, won zero with 3% vote share
Left's Cautious Stance
The Left Front approaches the alliance question with equal caution. CPI(M) sources view the Congress as potential "baggage" that could harm their electoral prospects. A Left leader provided revealing statistics about vote share changes between 2016 and 2021.
"In 2016, CPI(M) had nearly 20% vote share while BJP had just 10%," the leader noted. "By 2021, BJP's share jumped to 39% while ours dropped to 4.71%. Congress fell from 12.25% to 3%. Our votes primarily shifted to BJP, possibly because of our Congress alliance."
The CPI(M)'s Central Committee will discuss electoral strategies during its three-day meeting starting Friday in Thiruvananthapuram. The party faces the additional complication of Kerala politics, where Congress and CPI(M) remain arch rivals.
Kerala Complication
The Kerala angle adds another layer of complexity to the alliance question. A Congress-Left partnership in Bengal would provide the BJP with talking points in poll-bound Kerala. Unlike 2021, the BJP has emerged as a significant player in Kerala elections following better-than-expected performance in recent local body polls.
"Congress and Left will hold hands in Bengal but fight each other in Kerala," observed a BJP leader. "It will be friendship in Bengal and wrestling in Kerala. People will watch everything."
Past Alliance Failures
The 2021 Sanjukta Morcha experiment proved disastrous for both parties. The alliance managed to win just one seat - Bhangar - which went to their junior ally Indian Secular Front. Both Congress and Left failed to open their accounts. For the first time since Independence, the Left drew a complete blank in Bengal.
Sources within both parties confirm that no consultations have occurred regarding an electoral pact for the upcoming Bengal elections. This contrasts sharply with 2021 preparations, when they announced their alliance decision as early as December 2020.
Final Decision Authority
Despite internal opposition to a Left alliance, Congress leaders acknowledge that the final decision rests with the All India Congress Committee leadership. The AICC may well advocate for alignment with the Left, viewing it as necessary to remain relevant in what appears to be a two-cornered fight between TMC and BJP.
Some Congress leaders believe the party has little choice but to partner with the Left to be seen as a contender. Meanwhile, recent developments including Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and Enforcement Directorate raids on I-PAC premises signal that the primary political confrontation remains between Mamata Banerjee's TMC and the BJP.
Both Congress and Left continue to struggle with their political positioning in Bengal. They face the classic catch-22 situation: going alone risks further marginalization, while forming an alliance carries the baggage of past failures and potential voter backlash.
