Background Following the fall of CPI(M)-led
Left Front government in West Bengal along with the rise of the
Trinamool Congress in 2011 and the rise of the
Bharatiya Janata Party in 2014, the
CPI(M) had welcomed ideas of the broad understanding of
secular and
democratic forces. The first signs came when in the
Siliguri municipal election, CPI(M) made some local understanding with
INC resulting in CPI(M) leader
Ashok Bhattacharya being appointed as the
mayor. This success got popularity as the "Siliguri Model". After the success of the model, in the long run, some Congress and CPI(M) leader advocated for a Left-Congress alliance. This gradually materialized into "alliance" between INC and Left Front. The precedence of the
Left Front providing outside support to the UPA-I government in 2004-2008 was cited in support. Given the political history of West Bengal, the materialisation of an alliance between the
Congress & the
CPI(M), 2 parties that have been bitter rivals of each other since the 1970s & have a history of unleashing political violence against each other's cadres, took the political circles of the state by surprise. After much dispute and secession of two far-left groups:
SUCI(C) and
CPI(ML)L, from the
Left Front, both Congress and the Communists formed an understanding basis of what they called "seat-sharing", strongly objecting to the use of the word "alliance".
2016 election and Mahajot In 2016,
Mahajot was formed on the broad agreement that some political parties proposed before the
2016 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election for fighting against the
Trinamool Congress government in
West Bengal and the
Bharatiya Janata Party on national level.
Left Front consisting of
CPI(M),
CPI,
RSP,
AIFB and
DSP along with
INC released their respective candidate list in several rounds after consultations and bargaining. However, the alliance failed to gain the majority seats in the assembly elections.
Halt in broader understanding in 2019 Afterwards, ahead of
2019 Indian general election, the alliance between the
Congress and the
Left Front is off the cards as both camps could not agree on a seat-sharing formula for Lok Sabha elections, especially in the
Raiganj and
Murshidabad seats, where the incumbent MP was from CPI(M) but the MLAs of the constituent legislative assembly seats were mostly from the Congress.
2021 election and Sanjukta Morcha Subsequently, Mahajot succeeded to
Sanjukta Morcha in 2021 with the joining of
ISF in the alliance. Despite a spirited campaign, both the
Left Front and the
Indian National Congress drew a blank in the election with a considerable decrease in their respective vote shares. That was the first time when, the
West Bengal Legislative Assembly was devoid of any MLA from Left Front or Congress. Afterwards, ahead of
2024 Indian general election,
ISF decided to contest alone in the Lok Sabha polls due to some differences in seat sharing and marks the end of alliance with Left and INC. Thereafter, Sanjukta Morcha succeeded to LF–INC Alliance or
Secular Democratic Alliance. The alliance won only 1 seat (
Maldaha Dakshin by INC) out of the 42 it contested.
2026 election, exit of Indian National Congress and larger Left unity Afterwards, ahead of
2026 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election Indian National Congress decided to fight alone in the polls marking the end of LF–INC Alliance. On the other hand, Left Front kept uniting other left parties (communist and socialist parties) including
CPIML Liberation and other 'secular', 'democratic' forces and fractions together forming a broader Left alliance (
LF+). Subsequently,
Indian Secular Front (ISF) once again joined hands with the alliance led by the CPI(M)-led
Left Front. == Members ==