When 34 years of Left rule ended in West Bengal, Trinamool Congress (TMC) became the largest party in the state. From 2011 till now, no political party has got a chance to emerge in West Bengal. Neither in the Lok Sabha elections nor in the Assembly elections, any party stood before the Trinamool Congress. Trinamool Congress dominated the assembly elections of 2011, 2016, 2021 and also the Lok Sabha elections of 2014, 2019 and 2024.
In the last one and a half decade, neither was there any anti-incumbency wave against the Trinamool Congress, nor was any other party in a position to compete with the Trinamool Congress. Bharatiya Janata Party tried to give competition to TMC in the 2016 and 2021 assembly elections but could not get even 80 seats. BJP is trying its best to establish its roots in West Bengal, it has become stronger but till now it has remained far away from power.
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Understand how strong TMC is from election data.
Assembly elections are going to be held in West Bengal this year. There are 294 seats in the state. The majority figure is 148. TMC is securing more seats than this in the 3rd assembly elections. Be it the elections of 2011, 2016 or 2021, every time TMC formed the government with an overwhelming majority.
Alliance and TMC’s disillusionment
In West Bengal, Trinamool Congress and Congress had jointly contested the assembly elections. This alliance won 184 seats. Together they defeated the Left Front in the elections. In this alliance, TMC won 184 seats, while Congress got 42 seats, forming a TMC-led government. The TMC-Congress alliance won 227 seats in 2011. Some small parties were also part of this alliance. Mamata Banerjee became the Chief Minister, but soon cracks started appearing in the alliance.
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How did Mamata become stronger from 2016-2021?
In the 2016 assembly elections, Trinamool Congress alone won 211 seats. Congress fought separately and was reduced to only 44 seats. The period of decline of Congress has started in West Bengal. There is no formal alliance between the two parties till the 2021 elections. Congress and Left came together in alliance. Congress staked claim on 92 seats. Mamta Banerjee still remained invincible.
TMC won 213 seats in the 2021 elections. BJP established itself as an opposition party but could not break Mamata’s phalanx. BJP, which won 3 seats in 2016, won 77 seats in 2021. The Congress-Left and ISF alliance got one seat.
Why does Mamata Banerjee remain invincible in every election?
Sarthak Chaudhary, a former worker associated with Trinamool Congress, says, ‘Trinamool Congress has moved itself forward since 2007 on the politics of ‘Maa, Mati and Manush’. In every election, TMC combines Bengali regional identity, aggressive welfare politics and grassroots organization. Not being part of any alliance, people’s sympathy towards the party increases further.
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Politics of Bengali gentleman vs outsider
Trinamool Congress does not look at elections only from the perspective of development. BJP claims politics of development, TMC calls BJP an outsider. Mamata Banerjee is seen saying in public meetings that Hindi culture is being imposed on Bengal, which is a threat to the cultural identity of Bengal. Sarthak Chaudhary says that Bengalis have a sense of cultural superiority, which the leaders of the Hindi belt are unable to accept.
Mamta Banerjee is from West Bengal. Movements like Singur and Nandigram have further connected them with Bengali identity. She provides an electoral narrative of Bengali identity versus external power, uniting linguistic and regional sentiments in a way that Congress-BJP fail to do.
In the 2021 assembly elections, TMC had raised the slogan against Bharatiya Janata Party, ‘BJP is anti-Bengali. There are no big Hindi speaking leaders in Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress. Shatrughan Sinha is an exception. A large section considers TMC as their party of Bengal.
Plans that overwhelm the opposition
Schemes like Laxmi Bhandar, Kanyashree, Sabuj Sathi, Swasthya Sathi, Duare Sarkar are running in West Bengal. Due to these schemes, Trinamool Congress has strengthened its reach among the poor, students and rural sections. This class has become the most loyal voter of Mamata Banerjee. Mamata Banerjee’s cash transfer and Duare scheme is also popular in West Bengal. The administration itself has become connected like a party, due to which people are feeling a direct connection with the government.
hard left cadre
Sarthak Chaudhary points out that Trinamool Congress workers, like the Left cadres, have strong control at the grassroots level. Due to booth management and opposition being weak, these workers have dominance in the local bodies. TMC has better booth management, the organization is strong, whereas the opposition is struggling with their lack. Most of the cadres of Left Front and Congress have now shifted to TMC or BJP. They clash with TMC cadres and the officers listen to them. TMC’s hold extends from Panchayat to Municipality. TMC has its own model booth management, which even BJP does not have.
Trust on Muslim vote bank and Mamata Banerjee
In West Bengal, people call TMC a party of minorities. TMC’s core voters in 3 districts and more than 43 assembly seats are Muslims. BJP is a Hindutva party, many leaders have given objectionable statements on Muslims in West Bengal, local Muslims also remain angry on the issue of Bangladeshi infiltrators. In such a situation, the Muslim vote unites and falls in favor of Mamata Banerjee.
Mamata Banerjee openly says that she will not allow the Citizenship Amendment Act to be implemented in West Bengal. Will not tolerate atrocities on Muslims. Due to lack of coordination with Congress and Left Front, the votes of Muslims go directly to TMC’s account, whereas against BJP, they have faith in TMC only.
Why is the strategy of fighting alone effective?
Mamata Banerjee is extremely strong independently in West Bengal. If TMC goes into any alliance, it may have to compromise with many seats. By fighting alone, Trinamool Congress gathers opposition and opposition votes in the state. Congress and Left do not get a chance to flourish. Right now the political fight in West Bengal has become BJP vs TMC.
TMC’s strategy is so strong that in the year 2024, despite being a part of the India Bloc in the Lok Sabha, Mamata Banerjee contested alone on 42 assembly seats of West Bengal and gave a big blow to the BJP. TMC was very successful on the path of ‘Ekla Chalo’. Mamata Banerjee neither falls into coalition politics nor takes the risk of offering a seat to any party. He is successful on this strategy.
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