The Left sees a ray of hope of a possible "resurrection" in West Bengal in its defeat in Ballygunge in South Kolkata where it pushed the BJP to the third position to be the runner-up.
Speaking to The Hindu, party general secretary Sitaram Yechury said that this trend is likely to hold, especially since the party has been overhauling its ranks. "We have had an influx of young blood in the State, which was reflected in the by election result," Mr. Yechury said.
At Ballygunge, Babul Supriyo, who quit the BJP to join the Trinamool Congress, defeated CPI (M) candidate Saira Shah Halim by a margin of 20,228 votes. The CPI (M) still managed to secure 30.1% of the votes in Ballygunge, leaving the BJP in the third position with 12.8 % votes.