Leaders of both these parties also maintained that the outreach programme would not help the Marxists garner votes during the next year’s assembly elections. The Left Front has 23 seats in the 294 Bengal assembly, while the BJP had managed to win three seats in the 2016 polls but has since increased its tally to 16 because of defections. Senior BJP leaders, including Bengal unit president Dilip Ghosh, have often said that many leaders from other parties are eager to join the saffron outfit. BJP leaders glossed over the CPI(M)’s outreach in Amphan-hit areas. “The Marxists’ vote share has gone down to 7% in last year’s Lok Sabha polls.

Source: Hindustan Times June 19, 2020 08:18 UTC