Sudip Roy Barman Signals Congress-Left Alliance for 2028 Tripura Assembly Elections, Proposes 50:50 Seat-Sharing Formula

By Our Correspondent

Agartala, November 14, 2026

In a significant political development ahead of the 2028 Tripura Assembly elections, senior Congress leader and MLA Sudip Roy Barman has indicated that the Congress is prepared to join hands with the Left Front, particularly the CPI(M), to jointly fight against the BJP, provided an equal 50:50 seat-sharing formula is accepted by the Left leadership.

Making his position clear while interacting with journalists, Sudip Roy Barman reportedly said that he would have no objection to an electoral understanding between the Congress and the CPI(M) if the 60-member Tripura Legislative Assembly is divided equally, with 30 seats for the Congress and 30 seats for the CPI(M).

The proposal is being viewed as a potentially important shift in the Congress leadership's political approach towards the Left Front in Tripura. Rather than ruling out an alliance with the CPI(M), Sudip Roy Barman has now indicated his willingness to explore a broader opposition understanding, but with equal representation in seat allocation as a basic condition.

The 30-30 formula is particularly significant because Tripura has 60 Assembly constituencies. Under the proposed arrangement, both parties would contest 30 constituencies each, avoiding any perception that one party is being treated as junior or subordinate to the other.

The Congress leader's remarks also bring back memories of the 2018 Assembly elections, when divisions and disagreements over opposition seat-sharing helped the BJP consolidate its electoral advantage. The Congress and CPI(M) subsequently contested the 2023 Assembly elections in an alliance, although differences between the two parties have continued over political strategy and constituency-level arrangements.

The latest proposal comes against the backdrop of recent disagreements between the Congress and the Left Front over seat-sharing in the ongoing municipal election process. Both parties have expressed the need to prevent a division of anti-BJP votes, but their differences over candidate selection and seat allocation have complicated the process.

Sudip Roy Barman's latest position could therefore open a fresh debate within the opposition camp about the possibility of a united political platform against the BJP in 2028.

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