The Indian National Congress (INC) will contest all 294 Assembly seats in West Bengal in the 2026 Assembly elections, AICC general secretary and party in-charge for West Bengal, Ghulam Ahmad Mir, announced on Sunday.
Addressing the media in Asansol, Mr Mir said the party had concluded that alliances had weakened the Congress over the years. “A review of election results over the past five years shows that wherever Congress entered into alliances, the party gradually became weaker. This hollowed out the cadre and weakened the organisation internally,” he said.
Speculation had earlier suggested that the Congress and the CPI-M might form a pre-poll alliance in West Bengal to counter the Trinamul Congress (TMC) and the BJP. Mr Mir, who is also a Congress MLA from Jammu and Kashmir, dismissed the idea, stressing the need for the party to stand independently.
Although the Congress played a key role in the INDIA bloc during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and performed better than in 2019, and was a major partner in the mahagathbandhan in the recent Bihar Assembly polls, Mr Mir said alliances had ultimately harmed the party’s long-term strength. He cited the poor performance of the alliance in Bihar, including in its stronghold areas of Seemanchal.
“As a result of repeated alliances, the party’s strength across the country declined. Congress is the only party capable of uniting the nation from Manipur to Mumbai and from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. That is why we must stand firm on our own,” he said.
Mr Mir added that contesting all 294 seats in West Bengal would help the party prepare for the future. “With full effort, Congress will contest the Assembly elections next year. Only then will it be clear what the people of West Bengal truly want,” he said.
He also clarified that there was no pressure on the party from any quarter to enter into alliances. “Those who want alliances should first have a tactical understanding among themselves. Congress wants to explore a third alternative in Bengal. Whatever decision the state unit takes, the party will move forward accordingly,” he said.
Speaking at a workshop organised at the Midtown Club in Burnpur Steel Township as part of the Congress’s ‘Speak Up’ campaign, Mr Mir said the demand for the party to contest all seats had come from the people of Bengal.
Recalling the Congress’s past role in the state, he said Bengal had emerged as an industrial hub during Congress rule, with industries generating large-scale employment. “After the Trinamul Congress came to power, industries shut down and factories were replaced by shopping malls,” he alleged.
He also referred to the nationalisation of IISCO in Burnpur, coal mines and banks under former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, and the establishment of public sector units in the Asansol-Durgapur industrial belt under Jawaharlal Nehru, whom he described as calling them the “temples of modern India”.
Mr Mir warned that without a revival of the Congress, the new generation would be deprived of employment opportunities. He accused the TMC of lacking vision beyond its own interests and alleged that the Centre was attempting to erase the legacy of the Father of the Nation.
West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee president Subhankar Sarkar was also present at the event.