Releasing the document, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the party aimed to offer voters a distinct governance model centred on welfare, social security and economic support.
Also Read: West Bengal elections: Nearly 91 lakh names deleted from electoral rolls after SIR exercise
The manifesto promises free education up to the post-graduate level, a monthly assistance of Rs 2,000, and free travel in government transport for women across West Bengal.
In a bid to target rural distress, the party has proposed Rs 15,000 annually for marginal and landless farmers, along with up to 200 units of free electricity for cultivators. It has also pledged a universal health cover of Rs 10 lakh for every family in the state.
The Congress’ pitch comes as it attempts to regain political space in a state where it has been marginalised in recent years, and where the electoral battle has increasingly turned bipolar.
High-stakes, polarised contest
The Bengal assembly polls, scheduled for April 23 and 29 with results on May 4, will see voting for all 294 seats, with a majority mark of 148. The ruling TMC, led by Mamata Banerjee, swept the 2021 election with over 200 seats and is seeking a fourth consecutive term, while the BJP has emerged as the principal challenger after a sharp rise in its vote share and seat tally.
The contest this time is shaped by a mix of welfare politics, identity narratives and anti-incumbency pressures after 15 years of TMC rule. Key campaign themes include jobs, corruption, women’s safety, and competing visions of Bengali identity.
West Bengal’s electoral rolls have shrunk by a staggering 91 lakh voters ahead of the assembly polls, with the first phase scheduled for April 23. Of these, over 27.16 lakh names were struck off after adjudication by 705 judicial officers under High Court supervision, following an earlier deletion of around 63 lakh entries in the final rolls published on February 28, 2026. The highest number of ineligible voters was identified in Murshidabad and Malda, accounting for roughly seven lakh deletions.
Recent campaigning has underscored the intensity of the battle: TMC has leaned heavily on cultural messaging and welfare schemes to retain its base, while the BJP has sharpened attacks on governance and law-and-order issues.
Although widely seen as a TMC-versus-BJP fight, smaller players like the Congress and Left are attempting to reinsert themselves into the political narrative by pitching alternative welfare frameworks and governance models.
Against this backdrop, the Congress manifesto underscores a familiar but sharpened strategy—competing with both rivals on welfare promises while seeking to differentiate itself as a credible third force in an increasingly polarised electoral landscape.
