After Sitaram Yechury’s Death, Cong-CPM Alliance Talks Hit A Wall In West Bengal

With less than a year to go for the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, the anticipated alliance between the CPM and Congress remains in limbo. Despite the recent Kaliganj by-election, where Congress contested with CPM support and improved its performance, the absence of a structured coordination mechanism has left both parties drifting. Party insiders suggest that CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury, who was the key in maintaining crucial communication with Congress’ national leadership. But after his sudden demise in 2024 not much progress has been made. CPM sources indicate initial movement to create space for Congress, which has now stalled, with no confirmed timeline or structured plan for resuming discussions. Earlier this year, tensions between the CPM and ally RSP over seat allocation led to Congress being handed the Kaliganj seat. At the national level, AICC general secretary Ghulam Ahmad Mir had urged the Bengal unit to prepare for at least 90 assembly seats, signalling both independent strength and the option of alliance-building. This is in respect to the outcome of the 2024 Lok Sabha election where CPM led in just one assembly segment, while Congress held leads in 11, mostly in North Dinajpur, Malda, and Murshidabad. On several occasions symbolic unity has been absent between Pradesh Congress and CPM where state president Subhankar Sarkar and CPM leader Mohammad Salim separately organise protest programmes against the ruling Trinamool Congress. Further, internal frictions persist, including discomfort between CPM leaders and former Congress state chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, while AICC organisational chief KC Venugopal’s focus on Kerala is seen as affecting Bengal alliance efforts. With no talks between the two parties, the 2026 Assembly elections could once again see a direct fight between the Trinamool Congress and the BJP.