Kolkata, March 15 (NationPress) The Election Commission of India (ECI) has revealed a two-phase polling timeline for the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, marking a potentially daunting challenge for the ruling Trinamool Congress, which has held power since 2011. Political analysts assert that these elections may be the most difficult yet for the party.

A significant hurdle mentioned by experts is the fallout from communal violence that erupted in parts of the state in April of the previous year, triggered by protests against the newly introduced Waqf (Amendment) Act. The Calcutta High Court remarked that had the state government acted more swiftly, including timely deployment of Central Armed Forces (CAF), the violence might not have escalated as it did.

Reports indicate that the violent incidents in Murshidabad may have led to the alienation of some Hindu voters, while the state administration's shift in policy regarding the Waqf Act has reportedly displeased segments of Muslim voters, a demographic that has historically supported the Trinamool Congress.

Initially, in the first half of 2025, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee stated that the Act would not be enforced in West Bengal. However, as the year progressed, the government issued a notification mandating the registration of Waqf properties on the UMEED portal by a set deadline. This inconsistency drew criticism from non-BJP opposition entities, particularly the CPI(M)-led Left Front, the Congress, and the All India Secular Front, who accused the Trinamool government of hypocrisy.

In addition to this, the ruling party faces challenges from the Supreme Court's decision to annul 25,753 teaching and non-teaching positions in state-run schools due to recruitment irregularities. The Supreme Court supported the Calcutta High Court's earlier finding that the entire panel had to be invalidated as the state failed to separate “tainted” candidates from “untainted” ones.

Furthermore, the alleged rape of a law student in her college in Kasba, South Kolkata, has stirred political controversy, with all three suspects reportedly linked to the Trinamool Congress’s student organization, Trinamool Chhatra Parishad (TMCP). Opposition parties have seized upon this issue to critique the ruling party's handling of law and order and campus politics.

Another concern ahead of the elections is the removal of a substantial number of names from the electoral rolls following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in West Bengal. Recent data shows that approximately 63 lakh names were purged from the voters' list as of February 28, with further deletions anticipated after the judicial review of voters categorized under “logical discrepancy.”

In the previous 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections, voting commenced on April 18, with results announced on May 2. The state experienced an average voter turnout of 82.3% across its 294 constituencies, where the Trinamool Congress secured 215 of the 290 seats contested, while the BJP obtained 77 seats. In 2021, the CPI-M-led Left Front and the All India Secular Front had a seat-sharing agreement, with the AISF winning one seat, while both the Left Front and Congress failed to gain any seats.

This election cycle sees the Congress and Left Front contesting independently.