West Bengal Assembly polls 2016: Left Front releases first list of candidates, rules out joint campaign with Congress

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Monday released the first list of candidates for the upcoming state Assembly Elections.

Pic Courtesy: ANI

Kolkata: The Communist Party of India (Marxist), one of the crucial group of  Bengal's main opposition Left Front, on Monday released it's first list of candidates for the upcoming state Assembly Elections.

CPI(M) today announced 116 out of 294 candidatures who will contest for the polls. 

"The list includes 16 women, and 25 from the minority communities," Left front chairman Biman Bose said during a press meet here.

He further said, "We have welcomed an understanding with Congress to remove Trinamool from the state. Front, alliance and understanding are not the same thing."

However, Bose ruled out any joint campaign with the Congress. "Platform will, however, not be shared with the Congress for campaigning," he said.

"Discussion were on at a fast pace. We already have a front. Now we are forging a new front. Earlier we had parties like the Nationalist Congress Party and the Rashtriya Janata Dal with us. Now the Janata Dal-United will be part of the expanded Left front. Some other parties are also keen to join," said Bose.

Asked whether they would go for an alliance or seat adjustment with the Congress, Bose refused to give a direct reply, saying things will be evident later.

"If there is any violence in the campaign stage, there will be flagless movement by all like-minded parties fighting against the Trinamool Congress," he said.

On the front's chief ministerial candidate, Bose said at present they have no CM candidate.

Among the prominent names in the candidate list released today are:

• CPI(M) state secretary Surjya Kanta Mishra who will contest from his Narayangarh seat in West Midnapore district.
• CPI(M) state secretary usually does not contest elections, but an exception has been made for Mishra.
• CPI(M) state secretariat member Rabin Deb will be fielded from Singur, while Siliguri Mayor Asok Bhattacharya will contest from Siliguri wherefrom he lost in the 2011 Assembly polls.
• Former minister Kanti Ganguly, who had lost from Raidighi in 2011, will fight from the same seat while athlete Jyotirmoyee Sikdar has been fielded from Sonarpur Uttar seat.

Notably, CPI(M) forms the largest part of Bengal's Left Front. It is an alliance of Indian left-wing parties. 

West Bengal is slated to hold the seven-phase polls from April 4 to May 5. Counting of votes will be held on May 19.