In a key Left Front meeting held on Thursday in West Bengal, two constituent parties — the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Forward Bloc — strongly advocated for a broader Left-only political coalition ahead of the forthcoming assembly elections. Their stance marks a pushback against efforts to form seat-sharing arrangements with the Congress or the Indian Secular Front (ISF).
During the meeting, CPI and Forward Bloc leaders argued that the primary focus should be on uniting all Left-leaning forces rather than forming alliances with centrist or non-Left parties. They mentioned organisations such as the CPI (Marxist-Leninist) and SUCI, which have repeatedly voiced support for greater ideological alignment among Left entities.
This view has gained momentum since the “Left regeneration” gathering in Naihati on 19 November, where leaders from CPI, Forward Bloc, RSP, SUCI, and other Left-linked groups echoed the sentiment that the Left should revive its traditional unity and present a coherent ideological alternative in the state’s political landscape.
Thursday’s deliberations were attended by notable Left figures, including Left Front chairman Biman Bose, CPI(M) state secretary Mohammad Salim, CPI state secretary Swapan Bandyopadhyay, RSP state secretary Tapan Hore, and Forward Bloc state secretary Naren Chatterjee.
Rather than sealing an electoral understanding with Congress or ISF, the Left Front has now assigned Biman Bose the responsibility of approaching parties such as SUCI and CPI(ML) to explore dialogue over a stronger and ideologically uniform Left coalition.
The renewed emphasis on Left-only unity is seen as part of a broader strategy to strengthen the Left Front’s position and recalibrate its electoral approach as West Bengal moves closer to state-level polls.