The poll debacle in Tripura has stunned the Left with not a single senior party leader commenting on the drubbing in a state. Tripura has been a red bastion for the last 25 years.

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The North East slipped out of the Left's control with the BJP all set to sweep the assembly elections leading in 42 of the 59 seats that went to polls. With just 18 seats, the Left is down by 31 from the last time while the BJP has gained by 41 seats.

The result comes as a big jolt to the Left with its top leaders expecting to hold on to one its last strongholds.

Earlier in the day, senior Communist Part of India (Marxist) leader Brinda Karat had said that she was confident that the Left will retain power in the state.

‘We will talk when the final results are out,’ Prakash Karat told mediapersons in Delhi.  

There was little activity at the CPI (M) Headquarters as another Left citadel came crumbling down.

All that has been heard is that senior members will get together and dissect the massive defeat that has left them red faced.

Initially, the Left front seemed to be in the lead but it changed as the BJP gained rapidly.

With the massive lead the BJP is in a position to comfortably form a majority government in the state.

What worked for BJP?

The BJP has, apart from other factors, utilised massive deployment of money and other resources to influence the elections.  The BJP was able to consolidate all the anti-Left votes virtually appropriating the erstwhile main opposition party, the Congress.  

Meanwhile, the Polit Bureau has thanked the 45 per cent of the voters who extended support to the CPI(M) and the Left Front. ‘The Party will carefully examine the reasons for this electoral setback and take necessary remedial measures,’ the statement said.