Questions are being raised over the future of the opposition India alliance as differences among its many constituents are now coming to the fore and calls are being raised for serious introspection by the Congress. The latest point of contention has come from Maharashtra, where the Samajwadi Party (SP) has announced to leave the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) after a Shiv Sena (UBT) leader praised the demolition of the Babri Masjid.
SP and Trinamool Congress (TMC) were also not seen with their other Bharat Bloc partners during the protests over the Adani issue. There are differences of opinion among the partners on issues both inside and outside the Parliament. Now the parties are flexing their muscles within the block, especially after the Congress’s shocking defeat in the Haryana and Maharashtra elections. With the Congress “weakened” after its poor electoral performance, some opposition parties feel it should introspect and be lenient towards others. He is also speaking against the “dominance” of Congress in the opposition alliance.
Amid disagreements over issues between the partners, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has expressed dissatisfaction over the functioning of the India block and indicated that she would take charge of the alliance if given a chance. The TMC supremo has said that she can handle the dual responsibility of running the opposition front while continuing her role as the Chief Minister of West Bengal.
Now all eyes are on Congress’ next move as the key opposition party finds itself isolated in Parliament on several issues – protesting over Adani and farmers’ issues, while many of its partners stay away.
The opposition alliance was formed ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in June 2023 with the motto of “remove BJP, save the country”. But one of its founders, Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar, has since switched sides and joined hands with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA). SP’s Rajya Sabha MP Javed Ali Khan said that his party is still in the Indian National Development Inclusive Alliance (India), but admitted that “differences” exist within the alliance. “We are still part of the India alliance because we were among the founders. But there are differences on some issues among the alliance partners,” he told PTI.
On recent developments within the opposition alliance, Communist Party of India (CPI) general secretary D Raja said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge is the chairman of the alliance and should answer on these issues. However, he acknowledged that the Congress should be more generous towards its allies and should do a “serious introspection”.
“The Congress will have to do a serious introspection and consider why the seat distribution was not done properly for the assembly elections, where it lost badly,” Raja told PTI. He said all parties have to remain united as the Bharat Bloc was formed with the slogan “Remove BJP, save the country” and everyone should work towards that goal. Pointing to the poor performance of the Congress in the recent assembly elections, the Left leader said, “Therefore, the Congress should be generous towards other parties and listen to them.”
JD(U) leader Rajeev Ranjan said, “The Bharat Bloc has always been prone to disintegration. Now it is just a formality so that the effects of its disintegration can be translated into reality.” He said that during the assembly elections in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, the SP had expressed surprise at the stand of the Congress. “This alliance was visible only on paper, but now it will not even exist there,” the JD(U) leader said after the SP announced its exit from the MVA.
BJP leader CR Kesavan termed the India Bloc as “opportunistic”, saying, “India Bloc is a divided house of hypocrisy. The bitterness between them, which is now out in the open, is because the India Bloc feels that Rahul Gandhi “Failed leadership is the reason for his repeated failure in elections.”
On Banerjee’s “ready to lead India block” comment, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) spokesperson Mrityunjay Tiwari said leaders of all constituent parties of the opposition alliance will decide who will lead them. He said, “Mamata Banerjee is a strong pillar in the fight against the BJP-led NDA government. Various leaders are leading from the front in their respective states.”
SP leader Abu Asim Azmi said, “MVA never respected us… Uddhav Thackeray and his party had said that they will give up communalism and join hands with secular forces. However, he and his party have once again Respected those who demolished the mosque. Samajwadi Party can never live with those who want to divide people on the basis of religion.
SP’s Maharashtra unit chief Azmi said, “We were never called for the coordination meeting of the MVA. We wanted coordination like in the Lok Sabha elections. But Congress, Shiv Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) used to fight among themselves over seat sharing. That’s why we (MVA) lost (Maharashtra elections).”
The first meeting of India Block in Patna was organized by Nitish Kumar. At that time, many opposition leaders, while acknowledging their differences, had expressed the desire and need to work together to defeat the BJP.
Kharge had said, “We will have to make separate plans for each state and work together to remove the BJP from power at the Centre.” More than 32 leaders from about 17 political parties attended the Patna meeting.
According to sources, Gandhi had said that he had attended the meeting with a clean image, with “no recollection of past likes or dislikes with any party.” Gandhi had said, “We may have some differences of opinion, but we have decided to work together flexibly and protect our ideology.” He had alleged that India’s foundations and institutions are being attacked under the BJP rule. SP chief Akhilesh Yadav had said, “The message of the Patna meeting is clear for all of us that we need to work together to save the country.” However, Congress leaders believe that such things will continue to happen, but no opposition alliance can function without the Congress axis.