Politics of West Bengal
Politics in West Bengal is dominated by the following major political parties: the Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Indian National Congress (also known as Congress(I)), and the Trinamool Congress. All three are leading a regional bloc of parties; the CPI(M) heads the Left Front and the Trinamool Congress has emerged as the main component of the UPA in the state, while the Congress(I) generally head informal alliances of various minor parties that align ahead of elections.
In 1977 the Left Front won the state assembly elections, and the state was ruled by communists and other left groups till 2011. The erstwhile left front led West Bengal state government holds the Indian record for the longest period of governance.
Until 3 November 2000, Jyoti Basu was the Chief Minister of the state. After his resignation, due to health reasons, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee became the Chief Minister of West Bengal who continued in office until 13 May 2011.
In the run-up to the 2011 elections, the state witnessed several violent clashes between the workers of the opposition parties and the ruling left party cadres.[1]
In the 2011 Assembly Election, the Trinamool Congress- Indian National Congress alliance won by a huge margin with Mamata Banerjee becoming the first woman chief minister of West Bengal after 34 years of Communist rule.
In the 2016 Election, Congress and Left Front formed an alliance, and the election witnessed a three way contest between their alliance, Trinamool Congress, and BJP.
Major political parties of West Bengal
See also
Notes and references
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