Left parties, Cong, ISF seal the deal for 55 seats

The other seats are Egra in Purba Medinipur district, Kashipur in Purulia, and Pingla and Daspur in Paschim Medinipur.

While the Left announced the names of its candidates, the other two parties will declare the names later. Of the 55 seats on which the alliance partners reached a consensus, the Left Front will contest 38, the Congress will put up candidates in 12 and the ISF will contest five constituencies.

“We are announcing our candidates for the first two phases. We are also announcing the seat-sharing details between Left Front, Congress and ISF. The Congress will announce names of their candidates from Delhi. The ISF will also announce the names of its candidates in two to three days. But for the first two phases, party-wise distribution of seats have been finalised. However, in a few seats from the first two phases, the seat-sharing details will be shared later,” Bose told reporters.

He added, “Nandigram being a heavyweight centre, a consensus on who will contest from there has not been reached yet.”

Among the names announced by the Left Front are heavyweight CPM leader Sushanta Ghosh, who will contest from Salboni in Paschim Medinipur district; youth leader Madhuja Sen Roy, who has been fielded from Jhargram; and former minister Deblina Hembram, who will contest from Ranibandh in Bankura district.