The Enforcement Directorate’s raids on political consultancy firm I-PAC and the high-voltage political drama that followed seem to have further sharpened the already bipolar West Bengal politics ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections. As on date, the confrontation seems to have largely reduced the most-watched-for contest between Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Opposition BJP, leaving limited political space and scope for INDIA bloc parties like Congress and Left in the state.
The matter reached the Supreme Court after the Calcutta High Court deferred hearing in the case, indicating that the battle is set to escalate further. A “fighter” that she is, Banerjee is unlikely to let go of the situation without giving the BJP a good fight. As someone who till recently was grappling with strong anti-incumbency pressures, her open challenge to the Centre and Central agencies have only given her a fresh lease of political life.
The TMC has accused the BJP-led Centre of misusing Central agencies for political ends, a charge the saffron party has denied. The ED, on its part, has maintained that the raids are linked to an illegal coal mining case being investigated under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Amid this, other parties, such as Congress, needs to rethink their West Bengal’ strategy, say observers
The TMC is going solo and the Congress, too, decided to contest all 294 Assembly seats on its own, focusing on organisational revival and local issues such as unemployment and corruption to carve out a distinct space beyond the BJP-TMC polarisation. The state unit urged the Central leadership to allow a solo run — “ekla chalo” — arguing that past alliances with the Left Front weakened its voter base, say sources In the 2021 elections, the Congress failed to win a single seat.
However, after the I-PAC controversy, there needs to be re-thinking, even as divisions remain amongst those wanting an alliance with Left, those seeking going with the TMC, and those favouring the “ekla chalo” path. So far, no pre-poll alliances have been finalised and post-poll support to the TMC is one option. On Thursday, West Bengal Congress president Subhankar Sarkar backed the TMC, accusing the BJP of “misusing” the ED for political purposes.
As on date, the Congress plans to prioritise booth-level strengthening of the party across constituencies. With senior leader Rahul Gandhi is expected to undertake a ‘padyatra’ in the state to energise workers and address organisational disarray, the party hopes to position itself as an alternative to both the TMC and BJP, highlighting issues like ‘vendetta’ politics and the suspension of central welfare schemes like MGNREGA. .
However, the broader political narrative is becoming increasingly dominated by the TMC and the BJP.
The BJP continues to push for Hindu consolidation, while the TMC is doubling down on Bengali identity and resistance to Centre’s interference. The I-PAC controversy has further reinforced this binary, squeezing non-BJP, non-TMC parties, and risking vote-splitting that may benefit the BJP, say analysts.
With Banerjee projecting her defiance as a stand for federalism and democratic fairness, the I-PAC episode can become a turning point in the larger tussle between Opposition-ruled states and Central authorities. In other words, the Congress leadership will have to rethink a new plan out of its substantially weak position, they add.