1996 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election

Elections in state of India

1996 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election

* * *

| <- 1991 | 13 May 1996 | 2001 ->

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|

<- outgoing members

elected members ->

* * *

All 294 seats in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly
148 seats needed for a majority
Turnout| 82.94% ( 6.14 pp)
|  | Majority party  | Minority party  | Third party

|
|
|

Leader  | Jyoti Basu | Somen Mitra | Tapan Sikdar
Party  | CPI(M) | INC(I) | BJP
Alliance  | LF | INC(I)+ |
Leader since  | 1964  | 1992  | 1991
Leader's seat  | Satgachhia | Sealdah | Did not contest
Last election  | 36.87%, 182 seats  | 35.12%, 43 seats  | 11.34%, 0 seat
Seats won  | 153 | 82  | 0
Seat change  |  29  |  39  |
Popular vote  | 13,670,198  | 14,523,964 | 2,372,480
Percentage  | 37.16%  | 39.48% | 6.45%
Swing  |  1.05 pp |  4.36 pp |  4.89 pp

* * *

| Chief Minister before election

Jyoti Basu
CPI(M)

| Chief Minister after election

Jyoti Basu
CPI(M)

|

Legislative Assembly elections were held in the Indian state of West Bengal in 1996. The election took place simultaneously with the 1996 Indian general election.[1][2] This was the last election Jyoti Basu contested, as he retired from politics in 2000.

## Parties

[edit]

### Left Front

[edit]

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) had fielded 70 new candidates, but many of them failed to get elected.[3] The All India Forward Bloc had suffered a split before the election, with the emergence of the Forward Bloc (Socialist).[3]

The Left Front supported Janata Dal candidates in five constituencies.

### Indian National Congress

[edit]

Factionalism was rife within the state Congress unit. After being out of power in the state for about 20 years with no significant increase in either vote-share or number of seats in the last 15 years, most state Congress leaders had given up the hopes of defeating the Left Front & sought to re-evaluate their strategy. The elections took place alongside the general elections, in which there were 4 major players - the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Hindu right wing alliance, the centre-left alliance led by Janata Dal made up of Congress dissidents, the centrist alliance of the Congress party & the leftist alliance of Communist parties, out of which the BJP & JD didn't have much influence in the state. In 1991, the Congress under P. V. Narasimha Rao was able to form a minority government with the support of the Janata Dal, however Rao's tenure saw the Congress rife with defection of some of its senior leaders & charges of corruption. The political climate of India was charged with the issue of Ram-mandir, following the demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992. The BJP made the construction of Ram-mandir on the Ram Janmabhoomi site its primary electoral promise while the Janata Dal banked on the implementation of the Mandal Commission report as its main electoral plank in order to counter the BJP, leading to conflict between OBC & SC groups. However, the Mandir-Mandal issue didn't have much impact in the politics of the state which had been under Communist rule since 1977. As the Janata Dal was open to supporting both BJP & Congress, the support of the Left Front became the more important on the national stage. CPI(M) stalwart & the incumbent Chief Minister Jyoti Basu had been even offered the post of Prime Minister by the Congress when the Janata Dal government of V. P. Singh collapsed in 1990 due to BJP's withdrawal of support & again when the Congress withdrew its support from Chandra Shekhar's government in 1991.

In midst of such political instability, 2 factions developed within the state Congress unit. One faction led by Pranab Mukherjee was in favour of forging an electoral understanding with the Left Front in the state in order to gain their support on the national level. The other faction led by anti-Communist leaders like Siddharta Shankar Ray & Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi was stauchly opposed to it. The rivalry between these 2 groups played out in open during the 1992 elections to the post of state PCC president. The pro-Communist faction sided with Mukherjee's protégé, 4-time Sealdah MLA Somen Mitra, while the anti-Communist faction sided with Ray's protégé, state Youth Congress president & South Kolkata MP Mamata Banerjee.[4] Mukherjee played a decisive role in ensuring Mitra's victory in this election by having Banerjee's main supporter Ray sent out of the state as India's ambassador to the US at that time. Somen Mitra's and Mamata Banerjee's factions continued to fight over the choice of candidates to be fielded.[5] Banerjee played an important role in rallying public support for the party & fielding many new faces from the Youth Congress as the party's candidate.[5][6]

The Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury contested the Nabagram seat from jail, being imprisoned on murder charges.[7] His speeches were recorded from prison and played at campaign meetings.[7]

The Indian National Congress and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha had entered into alliance.[8]

## Seat Allotment

[edit]

###  Left Front

[edit]

Party  | Flag  | Symbol  | Leader  | Contesting Seats

|
|
|
|

| Communist Party of India (Marxist) |  |  | Jyoti Basu | 213
| All India Forward Bloc |  |  | Debabrata Biswas | 34
| Revolutionary Socialist Party |  |  | Manoj Bhattacharya | 23
| Communist Party of India |  |  | Swapan Banerjee  | 12
| Janata Dal |  |  | Vishwanath Pratap Singh | 5
| Democratic Socialist Party |  |  | Prabodh Chandra Sinha  | 2
| Marxist Forward Bloc |  | Pratim Chatterjee | 2
| Revolutionary Communist Party of India (Rasik Bhatt) |  |  | Rasik Bhatt  | 1
| Biplobi Bangla Congress |  |  |  | 1
Total  | 293

###  Congress Alliance

[edit]

Party  | Flag  | Symbol  | Leader  | Contesting Seats

|
|
|
|

| Indian National Congress |  |  | Somen Mitra | 288
| Gorkha National Liberation Front |  |  |  | 3
Total  | 291

###  Bharatiya Janata Party

[edit]

Party  | Flag  | Symbol  | Leader  | Contesting Seats

|
|
|
|

| Bharatiya Janata Party |  |  | Tapan Sikdar | 292
Total  | 292

## Results

[edit]

The Left Front won the election, entering into government for a fifth consecutive term.[3] Winning 203 out of 294 seats, the 1996 election represented the first major electoral set-back for the Left Front since its foundation.[9][10] The electoral losses were primarily felt in Calcutta and the industrial areas, and nine incumbent Left Front ministers failed to get re-elected.[9] All JD candidates finished in second place and RCPI lost its representation in the assembly.[10] However, in terms of votes the Left Front and the five JD candidates got 18,143,795 votes (49.3%).[11] Jyoti Basu's fifth Left Front government was sworn in, with 48 ministers representing all 13 districts of the state.[9]

Party  | Candidates  | Seats  | Votes  | %

|
|
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|

Left Front and allies  | Communist Party of India (Marxist) | 213  | 153  | 13,670,198  | 37.16
All India Forward Bloc | 34  | 21  | 1,912,183  | 5.20
Revolutionary Socialist Party | 23  | 18  | 1,367,439  | 3.72
Communist Party of India | 12  | 6  | 642,993  | 1.75
Marxist Forward Bloc | 2  | 2  | 150,099  | 0.41
Democratic Socialist Party (Prabodh Chandra) | 2  | 2  | 129,367  | 0.35
Revolutionary Communist Party of India (Rasik Bhatt) | 2  | 0  | 105,366  | 0.29
Biplobi Bangla Congress | 1  | 1  | 60,453  | 0.16
Janata Dal | 5  | 0  | 105,697  | 0.29
Indian National Congress | 288  | 82  | 14,523,964  | 39.48
Bharatiya Janata Party | 292  | 0  | 2,372,480  | 6.45
Gorkha National Liberation Front | 3  | 3  | 161,498  | 0.44
Jharkhand Party (Naren) | 8  | 1  | 145,503  | 0.40
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha | 26  | 0  | 134,436  | 0.37
Forward Bloc (Socialist) | 20  | 1  | 123,316  | 0.34
Bahujan Samaj Party | 48  | 0  | 67,853  | 0.18
Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation | 30  | 0  | 47,206  | 0.13
Akhil Bharatiya Gorkha League | 3  | 0  | 43,261  | 0.12
All India Indira Congress (Tiwari) | 29  | 0  | 20,555  | 0.06
Muslim League | 20  | 0  | 19,221  | 0.05
Amra Bangalee | 46  | 0  | 17,330  | 0.05
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (Mardi)  | 5  | 0  | 11,593  | 0.03
Pachim Banga Rajya Muslim League  | 5  | 0  | 5,359  | 0.01
Indian National League | 7  | 0  | 4,480  | 0.01
Social Action Party | 16  | 0  | 4,476  | 0.01
Jharkhand Party | 5  | 0  | 3,533  | 0.01
Hul Jharkhand Party | 2  | 0  | 3,309  | 0.01
Bharatiya Minorities Suraksha Mahasangh | 2  | 0  | 2,448  | 0.01
Samajwadi Jan Parishad | 2  | 0  | 1,218  | 0.00
Indian Democratic People's Party  | 3  | 0  | 515  | 0.00
All India Christian Democratic and Backward People's Party  | 1  | 0  | 392  | 0.00
Indian Union Muslim League  | 1  | 0  | 251  | 0.00
Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha | 2  | 0  | 178  | 0.00
Akhil Bharatiya Jan Sangh  | 1  | 0  | 49  | 0.00
Independents  | 844  | 4  | 898,677  | 2.44
Total | 2,035 | 294 | 36,788,753 | 100
Source: Election Commission of India[10]

## Elected members

[edit]

Constituency  | Reserved for
(SC/ST/None)  | Member  | Party

|
|
|

Mekliganj | SC | Ramesh Roy |  | All India Forward Bloc
Sitalkuchi | SC | Sudhir Pramanik |  | Communist Party of India
Mathabhanga | SC | Dinesh Chandra Dakua |  | Communist Party of India
Cooch Behar North | None | Mihir Goswami |  | Indian National Congress
Cooch Behar West | None | Soumindra Chandra Das |  | All India Forward Bloc
Sitai | None | Md. Fazle Haque |  | Independent
Dinhata | None | Kamal Guha |  | Forward Bloc
Natabari | None | Sibendra Narayan Chowdhuri |  | Communist Party of India
Tufanganj | SC | Puspa Chandra Das |  | Communist Party of India
Kumargram | ST | Salib Toppo |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Kalchini | ST | Manohar Tirkey |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Alipurduars | None | Nirmal Das |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Falakata | SC | Jogesh Chandra Barman |  | Communist Party of India
Madarihat | ST | Sushil Kujur |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Dhupguri | SC | Banamali Roy |  | Communist Party of India
Nagrakata | ST | Chaitan Munda |  | Communist Party of India
Mainaguri | SC | Bachchamohan Roy |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Mal | ST | Jagannath Oraon |  | Communist Party of India
Kranti | None | Sudhan Raha |  | Communist Party of India
Jalpaiguri | None | Anupam Sen |  | Indian National Congress
Rajganj | SC | Jatindra Nath Roy |  | Communist Party of India
Kalimpong | None | Gaulan Lepcha |  | Gorkha National Liberation Front
Darjeeling | None | Nar Bahadur Chettri |  | Gorkha National Liberation Front
Kurseong | None | Shanta Chhetri |  | Gorkha National Liberation Front
Siliguri | None | Ashok Bhattacharya |  | Communist Party of India
Phansidewa | ST | Prokash Minj |  | Communist Party of India
Chopra | None | Mahamuddin |  | Communist Party of India
Islampur | None | Abdul Karim Chowdhury |  | Indian National Congress
Goalpokhar | None | Hafiz Alam Sairani |  | All India Forward Bloc
Karandighi | None | Suresh Chandra Singha |  | All India Forward Bloc
Raiganj | SC | Dilip Kumar Das |  | Indian National Congress
Kaliaganj | SC | Pramatha Nath Ray |  | Indian National Congress
Kushmandi | SC | Narmada Chandra Roy |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Itahar | None | Sri Kumar Mukherjee |  | Communist Party of India
Gangarampur | None | Minati Ghosh |  | Communist Party of India
Tapan | ST | Khara Soren |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Kumarganj | None | Roy Dwijendra Nath |  | Communist Party of India
Balurghat | None | Biswanath Choudhury |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Habibpur | ST | Jadu Hembram |  | Communist Party of India
Gajol | ST | Debnath Murmu |  | Communist Party of India
Kharba | None | Mahbubul Hoque |  | Indian National Congress
Harishchandrapur | None | Birendra Kumar Maitra |  | All India Forward Bloc
Ratua | None | Samar Mukherjee |  | Indian National Congress
Araidanga | None | Sabitri Mitra |  | Indian National Congress
Malda | SC | Phani Bhusan Roy |  | Indian National Congress
Englishbazar | None | Goutam Chakravartty |  | Indian National Congress
Manikchak | None | Ram Prabesh Mondal |  | Indian National Congress
Suzapur | None | Rubi Noor |  | Indian National Congress
Kaliachak | None | Abu Hasem Khan Choudhury |  | Indian National Congress
Farakka | None | Mainul Haque |  | Indian National Congress
Aurangabad | None | Humayun Reza |  | Indian National Congress
Suti | None | Mohammad Sohrab |  | Indian National Congress
Sagardighi | SC | Das Paresh Nath |  | Communist Party of India
Jangipur | None | Habibur Rahaman |  | Indian National Congress
Lalgola | None | Abu Hena |  | Indian National Congress
Bhagabangola | None | Abu Sufian Sarkar |  | Indian National Congress
Nabagram | None | Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury |  | Indian National Congress
Murshidabad | None | Mozammel Haque |  | Independent
Jalangi | None | Unus Sarkar |  | Communist Party of India
Domkal | None | Anisur Rahman |  | Communist Party of India
Naoda | None | Jayanta Kumar Biswas |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Hariharpara | None | Mozammel Haque |  | Communist Party of India
Berhampore | None | Maya Rani Paul |  | Indian National Congress
Beldanga | None | Timir Baran Bhaduri |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Kandi | None | Atish Chandra Sinha |  | Indian National Congress
Khargram | SC | Biswanath Mandal |  | Communist Party of India
Barwan | None | Debabrata Banerjee |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Bharatpur | None | Id Mahammad |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Karimpur | None | Chittaranjan Biswas |  | Communist Party of India
Palashipara | None | Kamalendu Sanyal (sasthi) |  | Communist Party of India
Nakashipara | None | Shaikh Khabir Uddin Ahmed |  | Communist Party of India
Kaliganj | None | Abdus Salam Munshi |  | Indian National Congress
Chapra | None | Mir Quasem Mondal |  | Communist Party of India
Krishnaganj | SC | Sushil Biswas |  | Communist Party of India
Krishnagar East | None | Sibdas Mukherjee |  | Indian National Congress
Krishnagar West | None | Sunil Kumar Ghosh |  | Communist Party of India
Nabadwip | None | Biswanath Mitra |  | Communist Party of India
Santipur | None | Ajoy De |  | Indian National Congress
Hanskhali | SC | Biswas Shashanka Shekhor |  | Indian National Congress
Ranaghat East | SC | Binay Krishna Biswas |  | Communist Party of India
Ranaghat West | None | Shankar Singha |  | Indian National Congress
Chakdaha | None | Satyasadhan Chakraborty |  | Communist Party of India
Haringhata | None | Mili Hira |  | Communist Party of India
Bagdaha | SC | Kamalakshi Biswas |  | All India Forward Bloc
Bongaon | None | Pankaj Ghosh |  | Communist Party of India
Gaighata | None | Manmatha Roy |  | Communist Party of India
Habra | None | Baren Basu |  | Communist Party of India
Ashokenagar | None | Nirode Roy Choudhury |  | Communist Party of India
Amdanga | None | Hashim Abdul Halim |  | Communist Party of India
Barasat | None | Ashoke Mukherjee |  | Indian National Congress
Rajarhat | SC | Rabindra Nath Mandal |  | Communist Party of India
Deganga | None | Md. Yakub |  | All India Forward Bloc
Swarupnagar | None | Mostafa Bin Quassem |  | Communist Party of India
Baduria | None | Quazi Abdul Guffar |  | Indian National Congress
Basirhat | None | Narayan Mukherjee |  | Communist Party of India
Hasnabad | None | Gautam Deb |  | Communist Party of India
Haroa | SC | Kshiti Ranjan Mondal |  | Communist Party of India
Sandeshkhali | SC | Kanti Biswas |  | Communist Party of India
Hingalganj | SC | Nripen Gayen |  | Communist Party of India
Gosaba | SC | Ganesh Mondal |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Basanti | SC | Subhas Naskar |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Kultali | SC | Prabod Purkait |  | Independent
Joynagar | None | Deba Prasad Sarkar |  | Independent
Baruipur | None | Sovandeb Chattopadhyay |  | Indian National Congress
Canning West | SC | Bimal Mistry |  | Communist Party of India
Canning East | None | Abdur Razzak Molla |  | Communist Party of India
Bhangar | None | Badal Zamadar |  | Communist Party of India
Jadavpur | None | Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee |  | Communist Party of India
Sonarpur | SC | Bhadreswar Mondal |  | Communist Party of India
Bishnupur East | SC | Ananda Kumar Biswas |  | Communist Party of India
Bishnupur West | None | Sankar Saran Naskar |  | Communist Party of India
Behala East | None | Kumkum Chakraborti |  | Communist Party of India
Behala West | None | Nirmal Mukherjee |  | Communist Party of India
Garden Reach | None | Mohammed Amin |  | Communist Party of India
Maheshtala | None | Mursalin Molla |  | Communist Party of India
Budge Budge | None | Ashok Kumar Deb |  | Indian National Congress
Satgachia | None | Jyoti Basu |  | Communist Party of India
Falta | None | Sudhir Bhattacharjee |  | Indian National Congress
Diamond Harbour | None | Sheikh Daulat Ali |  | Indian National Congress
Magrahat West | None | Abul Basar Laskar |  | Indian National Congress
Magrahat East | SC | Nirmal Sinha |  | Communist Party of India
Mandirbazar | SC | Nikunja Paik |  | Communist Party of India
Mathurapur | None | Satya Ranjan Bapuli |  | Indian National Congress
Kulpi | SC | Sakuntala Paik |  | Communist Party of India
Patharpratima | None | Gopal Krishna Dey |  | Indian National Congress
Kakdwip | None | Ashok Giri |  | Communist Party of India
Sagar | None | Prabhanjan Mondal |  | Communist Party of India
Bijpur | None | Kamal Sengupta Basu |  | Communist Party of India
Naihati | None | Ranjit Kundu |  | Communist Party of India
Bhatpara | None | Bidyut Ganguli |  | Communist Party of India
Jagatdal | None | Anay Gopal Sinha |  | Indian National Congress
Noapara | None | Madan Mohan Nath |  | Communist Party of India
Titagarh | None | Prabin Kumar Shaw |  | Communist Party of India
Khardah | None | Dr. Ashim Kumar Dasgupta |  | Communist Party of India
Panihati | None | Nirmal Ghosh |  | Indian National Congress
Kamarhati | None | Shanti Ghatak |  | Communist Party of India
Baranagar | None | Amar Choudhury |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Dum Dum | None | Sankar Sen |  | Communist Party of India
Belgachia East | None | Subhas Chakraborty |  | Communist Party of India
Cossipur | None | Tarak Bandyopadhyay |  | Indian National Congress
Shyampukur | None | Santi Ranjan Ganguly |  | All India Forward Bloc
Jorabagan | None | Sanjoy Bakshi |  | Indian National Congress
Jorasanko | None | Deokinandan Poddar |  | Indian National Congress
Bara Bazar | None | Rajesh Khaitan |  | Indian National Congress
Bow Bazar | None | Sudip Bandyopadhyay |  | Indian National Congress
Chowringhee | None | Subarata Mukherjee |  | Indian National Congress
Kabitirtha | None | Ram Pyare Ram |  | Indian National Congress
Alipore | None | Saugata Roy |  | Indian National Congress
Rashbehari Avenue | None | Hoimi Basu |  | Indian National Congress
Tollygunge | None | Pankaj Banerjee |  | Indian National Congress
Dhakuria | None | Kshiti Goswami |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Ballygunge | None | Rabin Deb |  | Communist Party of India
Entally | None | Sultan Ahmed |  | Indian National Congress
Taltola | SC | Tapati Saha |  | Communist Party of India
Beliaghata | None | Manabendra Mukherjee |  | Communist Party of India
Sealdah | None | Somendra Nath Mitra |  | Indian National Congress
Vidyasagar | None | Tapas Roy |  | Indian National Congress
Burtola | None | Sadhan Pande |  | Indian National Congress
Manicktola | None | Paresh Paul |  | Indian National Congress
Belgachia West | None | Rajdeo Goala |  | Communist Party of India
Bally | None | Kanika Ganguly |  | Communist Party of India
Howrah North | None | Lagan Deo Singh |  | Communist Party of India
Howrah Central | None | Ambica Banerjee |  | Indian National Congress
Howrah South | None | Pralay Talukdar |  | Communist Party of India
Shibpur | None | Jatu Lahiri |  | Indian National Congress
Domjur | None | Padmanidhi Dhar |  | Communist Party of India
Jagatballavpur | None | M. Ansaruddin |  | Communist Party of India
Panchla | None | Gulsan Mullick |  | Indian National Congress
Sankrail | SC | Sital Kumar Sardar |  | Indian National Congress
Uluberia North | SC | Ramjanam Majhi |  | Indian National Congress
Uluberia South | None | Ghose Rabindra |  | All India Forward Bloc
Shyampur | None | Sanjib Kumar Das |  | Indian National Congress
Bagnan | None | Sabuj Dutta |  | Indian National Congress
Kalyanpur | None | Asit Mitra |  | Indian National Congress
Amta | None | Pratyush Mukherjee |  | Communist Party of India
Udaynarayanpur | None | Nanigopal Chowdhury |  | Communist Party of India
Jangipara | None | Ibha Dey |  | Communist Party of India
Chanditala | None | Akbor Ali Khandoker |  | Indian National Congress
Uttarpara | None | Jyoti Krishna Chattapadhyay |  | Communist Party of India
Serampore | None | Jyoti Chowdhury |  | Indian National Congress
Champdani | None | Abdul Mannan |  | Indian National Congress
Chandernagore | None | Kamal Mukherjee |  | Indian National Congress
Singur | None | Das Bidyut Kumar |  | Communist Party of India
Haripal | None | Kali Prasad Biswas |  | Communist Party of India
Tarakeswar | None | Pratim Chatterjee |  | Communist Party of India
Chinsurah | None | Naren Dey |  | All India Forward Bloc
Bansberia | None | Robin Mukherjee |  | Indian National Congress
Balagarh | SC | Dibakanta Routh |  | Communist Party of India
Pandua | None | Ali Sk. Majed |  | Communist Party of India
Polba | None | Saktipada Khanra |  | Communist Party of India
Dhaniakhali | SC | Kripasindhu Saha |  | All India Forward Bloc
Pursurah | None | Nimai Mal |  | Communist Party of India
Khanakul | SC | Banshi Badan Maitra |  | Communist Party of India
Arambagh | None | Binoy Datta |  | Communist Party of India
Goghat | SC | Shiba Prasad Malick |  | All India Forward Bloc
Chandrakona | None | Gurupada Dutta |  | Communist Party of India
Ghatal | SC | Ratan Pakhira |  | Communist Party of India
Daspur | None | Mukhopadhaya Chitta Ranjan |  | Communist Party of India
Nandanpur | None | Chhaya Bera |  | Communist Party of India
Panskura West | None | Chitta Ranjan Das Thakur |  | Communist Party of India
Panskura East | None | Biplab Ray Chowdhury |  | Indian National Congress
Tamluk | None | Anil Mudi |  | Indian National Congress
Moyna | None | Dipak Bera |  | Communist Party of India
Mahishadal | None | Sukumar Das |  | Indian National Congress
Sutahata | SC | Tushar Kanti Mandal |  | Indian National Congress
Nandigram | None | Debisankar Panda |  | Indian National Congress
Narghat | None | Brahmamoy Nanda |  | Communist Party of India
Bhagabanpur | None | Khanra Ajit |  | Indian National Congress
Khajuri | SC | Mondal Ramchandra |  | Communist Party of India
Contai North | None | Chakradhar Maikap |  | Communist Party of India
Contai South | None | Sailaja Kumar Das |  | Indian National Congress
Ramnagar | None | Mrinal Kanti Roy |  | Communist Party of India
Egra | None | Prabodh Chandra Sinha |  | Communist Party of India
Mugberia | None | Kiranmoy Nanda |  | Communist Party of India
Pataspur | None | Kamakhya Nandan Das Mahapatra |  | Communist Party of India
Sabang | None | Bangal Makhanlal |  | Independent
Pingla | None | Ram Pada Samanta |  | Communist Party of India
Debra | None | Sheikh Jahangir Karim |  | Communist Party of India
Keshpur | SC | Nandarani Dal |  | Communist Party of India
Garhbeta East | None | Susanta Ghosh |  | Communist Party of India
Garhbeta West | SC | Krishnaprasad Duley |  | Communist Party of India
Salbani | None | Khagendra Nath Mahato |  | Communist Party of India
Midnapore | None | Purnendu Sengupta |  | Communist Party of India
Kharagpur Town | None | Gyan Singh Sohanpal |  | Indian National Congress
Kharagpur Rural | None | Sheikh Najmul Haque |  | Communist Party of India
Keshiari | ST | Maheswar Murmu |  | Communist Party of India
Narayangarh | None | Surjya Kanta Mishra |  | Communist Party of India
Dantan | None | Nanda Gopal Bhattacharjee |  | Communist Party of India
Nayagram | ST | Subhas Chandra Saren |  | Communist Party of India
Gopiballavpur | None | Rana Sakti |  | Communist Party of India
Jhargram | None | Buddhadev Bhakat |  | Communist Party of India
Binpur | ST | Naren Hansda |  | Jharkhand Party
Banduan | ST | Lakhiram Kisku |  | Communist Party of India
Manbazar | None | Kamala Kanta Mahata |  | Communist Party of India
Balrampur | ST | Bhandu Majhi |  | Communist Party of India
Arsa | None | Nishi Kanta Mehta |  | All India Forward Bloc
Jhalda | None | Satya Ranjan Mahato |  | All India Forward Bloc
Jaipur | None | Shantiram Mahato |  | Indian National Congress
Purulia | None | Mamata Mukherjee |  | Communist Party of India
Para | SC | Bilasi Bala Sahis |  | Communist Party of India
Raghunathpur | SC | Natabar Bagdi |  | Communist Party of India
Kashipur | ST | Rabindranath Hembram |  | Communist Party of India
Hura | None | Abinas Mahato |  | Communist Party of India
Taldangra | None | Manoranjan Patra |  | Communist Party of India
Raipur | ST | Upen Kisku |  | Communist Party of India
Ranibandh | ST | Deblina Hembram |  | Communist Party of India
Indpur | SC | Kirity Bagdi |  | Communist Party of India
Chhatna | None | Subhas Goswami |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Gangajalghati | SC | Angad Bauri |  | Communist Party of India
Barjora | None | Susmita Biswas |  | Communist Party of India
Bankura | None | Partha De |  | Communist Party of India
Onda | None | Anil Mukherjee |  | All India Forward Bloc
Vishnupur | None | Jayanta Chowdhury |  | Communist Party of India
Kotulpur | None | Gouripada Dutta |  | Communist Party of India
Indas | SC | Nandadulal Majhi |  | Communist Party of India
Sonamukhi | SC | Haradhan Bauri |  | Communist Party of India
Kulti | None | Acharyya Maniklal |  | All India Forward Bloc
Barabani | None | Manik Upadhyay |  | Indian National Congress
Hirapur | None | Shyamadas Banerjee |  | Indian National Congress
Asansol | None | Tapas Banerjee |  | Indian National Congress
Raniganj | None | Bansha Gopal Chowdhury |  | Communist Party of India
Jamuria | None | Pelab Kabi |  | Communist Party of India
Ukhra | SC | Bagdi Lakhan |  | Communist Party of India
Durgapur-i | None | Mrinal Banerjee |  | Communist Party of India
Durgapur-ii | None | Debabrata Benerjee |  | Communist Party of India
Kanksa | SC | Ankura Saresh |  | Communist Party of India
Ausgram | SC | Kartick Chandra Bag |  | Communist Party of India
Bhatar | None | Subhas Mondal |  | Communist Party of India
Galsi | None | Idrish Mondal |  | All India Forward Bloc
Burdwan North | None | Nisith Adhikary |  | Communist Party of India
Burdwan South | None | Shyamaprosad Bose |  | Communist Party of India
Khandaghosh | SC | Dalui Shibaprasad |  | Communist Party of India
Raina | None | Shyamaprosad Pal |  | Communist Party of India
Jamalpur | SC | Samar Hazra |  | Communist Party of India
Memari | None | Tapas Chattopadhyay |  | Communist Party of India
Kalna | None | Anju Kar |  | Communist Party of India
Nadanghat | None | Biren Ghosh |  | Communist Party of India
Manteswar | None | Abu Ayesh Mondal |  | Communist Party of India
Purbasthali | None | Dutta Himangshu |  | Communist Party of India
Katwa | None | Rabindra Nath Chatterjee |  | Indian National Congress
Mangalkot | None | Sadhana Mallik |  | Communist Party of India
Ketugram | SC | Majhi Tamal |  | Communist Party of India
Nanur | SC | Anandagopal Das |  | Communist Party of India
Bolpur | None | Tapan Hore |  | Revolutionary Socialist Party
Labhpur | None | Manik Chandra Mondal |  | Communist Party of India
Dubrajpur | None | Bhakti Bhusan Mondal |  | All India Forward Bloc
Rajnagar | SC | Bijoy Bagdi |  | All India Forward Bloc
Suri | None | Suniti Chattaraj |  | Indian National Congress
Mahammad Bazar | None | Dhiren Sen |  | Communist Party of India
Mayureswar | SC | Dhiren Let |  | Communist Party of India
Rampurhat | None | Mahammad Hannan |  | All India Forward Bloc
Hansan | SC | Asit Kumar Mal  |  | Indian National Congress
Nalhati | None | Kalimuddin Shams |  | All India Forward Bloc
Murarai | None | Motahar Hossain |  | Indian National Congress

## Aftermath

[edit]

The Congress lost power in the general elections to the BJP, however BJP was unable to obtain majority in the Parliament on its own. Jyoti Basu, who had been re-elected as CM for a record 5th time, was offered the post of Prime Minister by both the Congress & the Janata Dal following the resignation of BJP's Atal Bihari Vajpayee within 13 days of assuming power due to lack of numbers in the Lok Sabha, lack of a consensual prime-ministerial candidate in the Congress & V. P. Singh refusing to become prime minister again. However CPI(M)'s highest decision-making body refused this offer, believing that if it accepted Basu's prime-ministership, then due to lack of numbers in the Lok Sabha, it would have to bend to the will of the Congress, which it saw as a bourgeois organisation. Jyoti Basu later remarked that this decision of the CPI(M) was a "historic blunder". Thus being denied prime-ministership, Basu put forward the name of Janata Dal leader & Karnataka CM H. D. Deve Gowda as the prime-ministerial candidate, which was accepted by the Congress, Janata-Dal, Left Front & other parties allied with them. Deve Gowda resigned after a year due to withdrawal of Congress' support & was succeeded by his Minister of External Affairs, Janata Dal leader Inder Kumar Gujral. Gujral resigned a year later, due to split in the Janata Dal caused by Lalu Prasad Yadav's expulsion due to his involvement in the fodder scam & the Congress withdrawing its support due to Gujral's refusal to expel DMK from the government, whose leader M. Karunanidhi had been implicated in assisting Rajiv Gandhi's murder in Jain Commission's report.

In January 1998, following disagreements with both AICC President Sitaram Kesri & state PCC president Somen Mitra over the Congress party's approach towards the Left Front, Mamata Banerjee left the Congress & formed her own party, consisting mostly of the supporters of Siddhartha Shankar Ray. Her party, in alliance with BJP, won 7 seats from the state in the general elections held on February that year, while the Congress retained only one seat & lost 7 others from the state. Somen Mitra resigned as the state PCC chief after this debacle & was succeeded by A. B. A. Ghani Khan Choudhury, the lone Congress MP from the state.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ M. L. Ahuja (2000). Handbook of General Elections and Electoral Reforms in India, 1952–1999. Mittal Publications. p. 49\. ISBN 978-81-7099-766-5.
2. ^ The Hindu. The case against simultaneous polls
3. ^ a b c India Today. Shrinking mandate
4. ^ "No 'Ekla Cholo' For Pranab Mukherjee, He Believed In 'Sabka Saath". timesofindia.indiatimes.com.
5. ^ a b India Today. West Bengal: Advantage Left Front
6. ^ rediff.com. The X Factor
7. ^ a b Indian Express. TMC’s Madan Mitra electoral battle from jail looks a winner
8. ^ Communist Party of India (Marxist). Review of the May 2001 Assembly Elections (may 2001)
9. ^ a b c N. Jose Chander (1 January 2004). Coalition Politics: The Indian Experience. Concept Publishing Company. pp. 105–111\. ISBN 978-81-8069-092-1.
10. ^ a b c Election Commission of India. STATISTICAL REPORT ON GENERAL ELECTION, 1996 TO THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF WEST BENGAL
11. ^ Election Commission of India. STATISTICAL REPORT ON GENERAL ELECTION, 1991 TO THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF WEST BENGAL

## External links

[edit]

* West Bangal General Legislative Election Results at the Election Commission of India

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