West Bengal Congress Eyes 5-6 Seats for Upcoming Lok Sabha Elections
With seat-sharing talks within the Opposition alliance heating up, the Congress unit in West Bengal has submitted its wishlist for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Party leaders presented their claim to a total of five to six seats in the state to national president Mallikarjun Kharge and MP Rahul Gandhi.
Target Seats:
- Murshidabad: 3 seats
- Malda: 2 seats
- Purulia: 1 seat
- Darjeeling: 1 seat
- Raiganj: 1 seat
- Basirhat: 1 seat (under consideration)
This focus on Murshidabad, Malda, Darjeeling, Purulia, and Raiganj reflects a strategic approach to capitalize on specific regional dynamics and improve upon the party’s current standing of just two MPs from the state.
Alliance Landscape:
The Congress remains committed to allying to counter the BJP in West Bengal, with options being Trinamool Congress or the Left parties as partners. While a unified TMC-Congress-Left alliance is off the table, individual agreements are a possibility.
TMC’s Proposal:
Interestingly, sources revealed that Trinamool Congress suggested the Congress contest around 300 seats nationwide where it directly competes with the BJP, leaving the remaining seats to regional parties supported by Congress. This proposal, however, seems unlikely to be accepted wholeheartedly by the Congress.
Next Steps:
With the INDIA bloc aiming to finalize seat-sharing discussions within a week, the fate of the Congress’ bid will be known soon. Whether they secure their desired seats and which alliance they enter will be crucial factors in their West Bengal Lok Sabha election strategy.
Discussions about seat sharing for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections are intensifying in West Bengal. Meanwhile, Congress has put forward its demand for seats. The party has expressed its desire to contest elections on 5 to 6 seats.
The West Bengal unit of Congress met party national president Mallikarjun Kharge and MP Rahul Gandhi and expressed their demands. The party has demanded to contest elections on three seats in Murshidabad, two in Malda and one seat each in Purulia, Darjeeling and Raiganj. The party is also considering Basirhat’s seat.
The Congress is ready to ally with either the Trinamool Congress or the Left parties in West Bengal. The party has proposed to contest elections on 300 seats in a direct contest with TMC. Congress will support regional parties in the remaining seats.
In 2019, out of 42 seats in West Bengal, Trinamool Congress won 22 seats, BJP won 18 seats and Congress won 2 seats.
