‘Left to make comeback, TMC, BJP politics stuck in mandir–masjid': Fiery Bengal candidate Dipsita Dhar | Exclusive

‘Left to make comeback, TMC, BJP politics stuck in mandir–masjid': Fiery Bengal candidate Dipsita Dhar | ExclusiveDipsita Dhar, a promising candidate for Left this Bengal poll, believes the front remains relevant amid TMC-BJP 'mandir-masjid politics. Exclusive interview:Updated on: Apr 28, 2026 6:47 PM ISTBy Nayanika SenguptaShare viaCopy link After ruling West Bengal for 34 years, the Left Front saw its dominance collapse in 2011 - and has since struggled with questions over its relevance. Now, amid a mainly Trinamool Congress (TMC) versus Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) landscape, the Left is attempting a comeback, pitching itself as the only alternative focused on bread-and-butter issues.Dipsita Dhar, SFI leader fielded by the Left Front from Dum Dum Uttar seat for the Bengal assembly elections 2026 (Nayanika Sengupta/Hindustantimes.com)At the forefront of this push one of Left Front's promising candidate Dipsita Dhar, whose sharp, direct campaigning style has drawn comparisons with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.Dipsita Dhar, a Students' Federation of India (SFI) leader fielded by the Left Front from Dum Dum Uttar seat for the Bengal assembly elections 2026, has done her PhD in Population Geography at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).In an exclusive interview with hindustantimes.com, Dhar speaks about the Left's decline, lessons from its years in power, and why she believes the party is poised for a political revival in Bengal.Q. So the left rule for 34 years and has lost relevance, so why should voters trust you?A. We don't think that left has lost its relevance. Even in the last panchayat election, if you remember, the whole machinery of the ruling government was behind ensuring that people are not able to vote. Even during the counting time, I was one of the counting agents.Our election boxes were snatched. The counted voting lists were snatched. So I don't think if at all we are irrelevant, the ruling government or the ruling party has to be so proactive in taking away people's rights. Track Bengal elections April 2029 updates hereAnd if you're going to look into the last elections, the left had gained its ground considerably. So we don't agree to this idea that left is irrelevant. In the last whole election time, the BJP had been talking to their voters less and trying to talk to our voters more and asking them to vote for the BJP. If at all we are irrelevant, if at all our voters were irrelevant, I don't think this all would have happened.SFI supporters at a rally of Left Front's Dum Dum Uttar candidate Dipsita Dhar in Birati area earlier this month (Nayanika Sengupta/Hindustantimes.com)We are relevant because we believe we are the only alternative who are talking about pro-people policies. Both Trinamool and BJP, rather than talking about people's development, rather than talking about bread-and-butter issue, about employment, about education, their whole politics had been on the binary of mandir and masjid.It's all about your religion, it's all about your identity. It's too much identitarianism that is happening in Bengal, which was not there previously, before 2011. So we think we are the only one who are looking beyond the binary.So we are the most relevant political force for every working class in Bengal.Q. What went wrong for the left after 2011? What needed change?A. I think the major problem was, since we were there in the government for a longer period of time, we had a state dependency. A lot of our people who…

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