TRIPURA
FOR 25 UNINTERRUPTED years, the CPI(M) dominated Tripura through powerful grassroots organisations, deep influence among workers and peasants, and a highly disciplined cadre network. Today, however, the party finds itself battling an existential crisis.
The decline has been dramatic. In the 2018 assembly elections, the BJP, which until then had less than 2 per cent vote share and no representation in the assembly, stormed to power by winning 36 seats in the 60-member house, while the CPI(M) was reduced to just 16 seats. In 2023, the BJP retained power with 32 seats, while the CPI(M), contesting in alliance with the Congress, slipped to 11 seats. The Congress won three seats, while the newly formed Tipra Motha emerged as a major force with 13 seats. It later joined the NDA.
Yet, the CPI(M) in Tripura still retains considerable organisational strength and a substantial vote share. Together, the left-Congress alliance secured more than 36 per cent of the vote in the 2023 election. However, the party’s biggest challenge lies in the steady erosion of its rural and tribal support, along with the weakening of its traditional Bengali-speaking working-class base.
Tripura’s tribal groups, which account for more than 30 per cent of the state’s population, have increasingly shifted from class-based politics to identity-driven mobilisation. Pradyot Bikram Manikya Deb Barma, the titular king and leader of Tipra Motha, has successfully tapped into indigenous identity politics, drawing away a voter base that once strongly backed the left because of its land reforms and rural welfare programmes. Meanwhile, much of the Bengali population, particularly younger voters, has gravitated towards the BJP’s political narrative. They believe that the CPI(M) no longer offers a compelling political vision for younger generations. Although it continues to wield influence through trade unions and organisations such as the Ganamukti Parishad, its membership has declined significantly. The party’s shrinking influence among tribal voters has become especially evident in elections to the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council. Once the dominant force in the council, the Left Front failed to win a single seat for the second consecutive election, securing less than 10 per cent of the vote and failing to finish runner-up in any constituency.
Despite these setbacks, CPI(M) state secretary Jitendra Choudhury remains optimistic about the party’s prospects. “The 2028 assembly elections will bring drastic change because people are waiting to remove the current regime,” he told THE WEEK. He accused the BJP and Tipra Motha of pursuing “politics of violence and intimidation”, alleging repeated attacks on CPI(M) party offices across the state. Choudhury also argued that identity politics has long been used by successive parties, first the Congress and now Tipra Motha, to drive a wedge between tribal and Bengali communities. “The promises made to tribal people are ultimately unsustainable. The illusion will not last forever,” he said, alleging a tacit understanding between the BJP leadership and Tipra Motha.
The CPI(M), he said, has already begun preparing for the 2028 elections while attempting to reconnect with younger voters. “Left parties across the world faced difficulties after the economic changes of the 1990s, which created a political vacuum. We are trying to overcome that while also understanding the aspirations of the younger generation,” he said. “It is wrong to say we do not have capable young leaders. We do have them, but unlike in Bengal, our younger leaders did not get enough exposure.”
The CPI(M)’s prospects in Tripura are closely tied to its alliance with the Congress. Together with other left parties, the two formed the Secular Democratic Front. At the same time, the BJP is grappling with internal challenges and it no longer has a mass leader comparable to former chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb. Anti-incumbency and the unfulfilled promises of the ruling alliance have given the left a narrow opening.
