INDIA bloc still struggling to get its act together

While the BJP is geared up to launch its 2024 Lok Sabha poll campaign for the upcoming elections from Bihar’s Champaran with the slogan ‘Modi Sarkar Teesri Baar’ from January 13 and has formulated extensive plans for rallies post Sankranthi, the opposition bloc is still limping.

The opposition is yet to find a convenor who can steer the bloc INDIA in an aggressive manner so that they can take on the BJP-led NDA government. Instead of discussing and formulating a strategy on seat sharing, some of the parties are pulling in different directions. The Congress on its own held internal discussions and has begun seat sharing talks in some states with some likeminded parties and not as a bloc.

Probably, the Congress feels that no consensus is possible amongst the Bloc INDIA and hence it has asked its senior leaders to engage in talks with some parties. It has constituted a five-member committee for the purpose. It has started talks with AAP both in Delhi and Punjab. Both are confident of winning seats on their own and the possibility of the talks on seat sharing may hit a roadblock.

The Congress has pre-poll alliances with parties like DMK in Tamil Nadu, RJD and JDU in Bihar, JMM in Jharkhand and others in Assam, but has no tie-up with some main parties in key states. In West Bengal, the TMC and left despite being alliance members are not ready to share seats with each other. The Congress will have to either choose left or TMC for seat sharing. In fact, Mamata Banerjee had on couple of occasions expressed her unwillingness to share seats with Congress or the left. Even if she finally relents, she may like to leave only a handful of them. Similarly, in Kerala, West Bengal, Delhi and Punjab, the bloc is likely to face serious problems. In Kerala, the Congress has 19 of the 20 MPs from the state and striking an arrangement with CPI-M seems bleak.

In Uttar Pradesh, Congress and Samajwadi Party are not on good terms as the SJP leader Akhilesh Yadav is miffed with the Congress “betrayal” by not agreeing to share seats in the just concluded Madhya Pradesh elections and the statements made by Congress leaders and former Chief Minister Kamalnath against Akhilesh. On record, the Congress leadership feels that a middle path could be found out, but the chances appear to be bleak.

The AICC president exuded confidence that by the month-end the issues would be resolved but even if we presume that would happen, they would still be left with very little time to launch a full-fledged campaign. The seat sharing would depend on how effectively the leaders of other parties can handle the dissent in their respective parties over the seats that they may have to forego as part of alliance dharma.

On the other hand, the Congress party which seems to be not so confident of the success of the bloc INDIA emerging as a strong united opposition and achieve ‘one candidate one constituency’ formula to avoid split in votes is simultaneously preparing the plan ‘B’. It wants to keep the list of possible candidates who can contest in all the 545 Lok Sabha constituencies and has appointed observers for all the seats.

The party says that in case talks on seat sharing succeed then they will have to ask some of their candidates to sacrifice their seats. The party is also assessing its winning chances in each of the Parliamentary constituency. But, internally, it seems to have concluded that taking on the BJP is not an easy task.