CPI(M)'s vote share declining in its bastions

New Delhi, May 19 (PTI): The just concluded Lok Sabha polls could be a wake-up call for CPI-M as it has not only lost seats by more than 60 per cent but also witnessed a dip in its vote share in its strongholds of West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura.

The party's overall vote share has fallen from 5.66 per cent in 2004 to 5.33 per cent this year.

All the three states, ruled by the Marxists, have witnessed decline in the percentage of polling for the party, leading to its tally going down from 43 in 2004 to 16 this year.

The percentages of vote share by CPI(M) in West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura are 33.1, 30.48 and 61.69 respectively. The vote share in these states in the last elections was 38.57 per cent, 31,52 per cent and 68.8 per cent respectively.

In West Bengal, the Trinamool Congress, which got 21.04 per cent polls in 2004, increased its share to 31.17 per cent this year.

The vote share of both Congress and BJP also declined in West Bengal from 14. 56 per cent and 8.06 per cent to 13.45 per cent and 6.14 per cent respectively.

As CPI(M)'s vote share went down in Kerala, Congress increased its share from 32.13 per cent to 40.13 per cent. BJP's share went down from 10.38 per cent to 6.31 per cent this year. PTI