By Tirthankar Mitra
KOLKATA: The two-phase Assembly election scheduled later this month is a battle to regain political relevance in West Bengal politics for both CPI(M) and Congress. Once arch political opponents who later became electoral allies, both the outfits failed to win in a single Assembly constituency in the state in tge2021 assembly polls- its worst electoral performance in the post independence period.
Post publication of Assembly election results in 2021, electoral politics in the state has been reduced to a binary with ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and principal Opposition party, BJP engaged in verbal jousts even as CPI( M) and Congress looked on from the sidelines. Incidentally while TMC, Congress and CPI(M) are bitter political opponents in the state, they are allies in anti-BJP INDIA coalition at the national level.
The national level alliance has had two different effects on electoral game plans of the Congress and the CPI(M) in West Bengal. While the CPI(M) notwithstanding its depleted support base is going all out against TMC, mindful of the support of TMC in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, the national leadership of Congress is reluctant to rub TMC the wrong way and overlooks the bitter political rivalry at the state level.
Political differences came to such a pass that the national leadership of Congress replaced Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury its state chief and known baiter of TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee. Subhankar Sarkar known to be soft on the TMC chief stepped into Chowdhury’s shoes and toned down criticism of the TMC chief and her government.
The replacement was made with an eye on maintaining harmony within the Opposition bloc of INDIA to which both the parties belong. Certainly not a morale booster for the Congress rank and file, it left the grassroot activists in no doubt that their national leadership is keeping TMC in good humour taking account importance of TMC in anti-BJP movement.
The “spirit of adjustment” continues even as Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge releasing the election manifesto recently spoke of a “,third way’ while seeking votes for his party. Making clear that the camaraderie in between the two outfits in INDIA alliance remains unaffected, he said that the electoral battle is only confined to West Bengal. The Congress has fielded candidates in all 294 seats in Bengal assembly polls due on April 23 and April 29.
Congress, the senior partner in onetime poll alliance with the Left does not seem to have its heart in poll battle ahead even though it has already announced its nominees in 294 Assembly segments in the state. Going by its election manifesto declared recently, it appears to be a take on TMC’s previous poll promises.
The poll promises of the Congress comprise Durga Samman which is a pledge to give a monthly honorarium of two thousand rupees to every woman once it emerges victorious. It is a take on TMC government’s Lakshmir Bhander scheme started in 2021.
On paper, the amount of Durga Samman exceeds that of Lakshmir Bhander. But given the unlikely possibility of Congress forming the government, the programmes in the party’s poll manifesto make no impact on the voters.
Next comes Bidhan Swasthya Suraksha which offers a medical insurance of Rs 10 lakhs to every individual. Named after the most successful chief minister of West Bengal, Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy, it is double the amount of medical insurance of TMC government ‘s Swasthya Sathi and yet the bottom of the barrel support base of the Congress makes it a poor draw to the voters.
Yuba Samman scheme of Congress pledges filling up of all vacant posts in the state government. It is a tall order given the web of litigation which remains a stumbling block to any dispensation taking up the reins of governance after elections.
Sikshar Alo promises free education till graduation level together with skill development centres. Krishak Samman promises and yearly grant of Rs 15,000 for every farmer and free electricity of 200 units every month.
The Congress pledge for students welfare is at a disadvantage vis-a-vis a clutch of students welfare schemes of the TMC dispensation. These include Sabuj Sathi, Rupasree, Kanyasree which provide bicycle for students together with financial grants to girl students and a sum for matrimonial expenditure, all of which have given rich political dividend to TMC in successive elections.
The Krishak Bandhu scheme of TMC government gives a sum Rs 10,000 to plot owners and Rs 4,000 toa landless farmers together with subsidized agricultural tools and other facilities. The Congress pledge to farmers really falls far short of the ongoing TMC largesse for them.
The Congress is also focusing on local issues and concentrating on organisational revitalization. But such endeavour can only be capped “too much too late” on the eve of the elections.
The CPI(M) is also starting the electoral battle in Bengal polls from the position of zero seat in the outgoing assembly, but unlike the Congress , the party has embarked on a no holds barred campaign against Trinamool Congress. It’s campaign was unofficially kicked off by Bangla Bachao Yatra (Save Bengal March) in November last year in which participants travelled from Coochbehar to North-24-Parganas.
This warm-up exercise was accompanied by organisational overhaul. Focussing on local issues, it placed a poll manifesto emphasizing on employment, industrialisation and labour rights.
Arguably a significant point of this 11-point poll manifesto is women security promising justice for the RG Kar victim and Tamanna, a nine year old girl who died in a bomb explosion during a poll victory celebration of Trinamool Congress. Tamanna’s mother is a CPI(M) nominee in this election while the mother of the RG Kar incident victim is a candidate of BJP.
Setting up new software and hardware parks, initiatives in establishing heavy and medium industries, transparency in all government recruitments including in schools and colleges are part of the CPI(M) poll manifesto. All these poll promises are digs at the 15 year old TMC dispensation inviting unfurling of the fact sheet during the 34 year long Left Front regime whose blots have not faded from public memory.
The promise of one permanent job in each family remains the first poll pledge of the Red brigade. Though joblessness is one of the principal banes of the state, no methodology has been focused to achieve this target.
The CPI(M) vote share dropped to 4.8 per cent in 2021 Assembly election in which it drew a blank. The 2024 Lok Sabha polls was marked by increasing its vote share to 5.7 per cent. CPI(M) is contesting in 195 seats on its own while its other Left Front partners and the ally Indian Secular Front are contesting in the remaining 99 seats.
The big tragedy of the CPI(M) is that in the present polarized political situation in Bengal, even if the CPI(M) raises its share of votes, that will help the TMC as bulk of that Left votes went to the BJP in the Last elections. Right now, there is little chance for both the Congress and the Left Front led by the CPIM) to make any turnaround. Congress has better chance to come out of Zero syndrome as the party has some traditional pockets in South Bengal districts where the Party can pose some challenge to the BJP and the TMC in around ten seats.
As far the CPI(M) is concerned, any win in the assembly seats will require total return of the Left votes which went to BJP in the 2021 polls and the mobilisation of anti-TMC votes which generally go to the only assembly opposition BJP. This is a gigantic task. But still the young brigade of the CPI(M) as also CPI and CPI(ML)-Liberation are working hard. Even if they do not get full returns in the 2026 polls, their efforts can be taken forward to get dividends in the next local polls as also coming Lok Sabha polls. (IPA Service)
