The cracks within the INDIA bloc are now visible on the surface. The TMC and the Samajwadi Party are not happy with the Congress party’s unipolar focus on the Adani issue. They would rather that other issues such as the Sambhal violence get more play; for its part, the Aam Admi Party is happy to focus on the Adani issue, but is not that happy that it will enter into a tie up with the Congress for the coming Delhi elections. The fact that the Congress did not offer a seat to its allies in Haryana rankles with both AAP and the SP, specially when for some inexplicable reason the Left was accommodated with a seat.
Additionally the Uddhav Thackeray Sena seems to be rethinking throwing in its lot with the Congress. In keeping with the coalition dharma the UBT had watered down its stringent Hindutva and some of its cadres feel that Uddhav Thackeray let down the legacy of his father the late Bal Thackeray in doing so. There seems to be a course correction of late, with UBT leader Sanjay Raut claiming that had the Sena not been there the pran pratishtha of Lord Ram in Ayodhya would not have been possible.
One reason for the discontent within is of course the inability of the Congress to take on the BJP electorally post the Lok Sabha polls. There is a feeling amongst the alliance partners—all of whom are regional players (apart from the Congress) that their agendas are different. WHile the Congress wants to focus on national issues to the point of raising the Adani bogey and the caste census at every state election, the allies feel that local and regional issues should take precedence, as should regional leaders.
Therein lies the crux of the problem. The INDIA bloc lacks a common minimum program or even a convenor to keep each ally on the same page. Whenever there has been a coalition in the past, there has always been a convenor, and mostly the said person has been from one of the regional parties: from NT Ramarao (National Front) to George Fernandes & Sharad Yadav (NDA) to Chandrababu Naidu (United Front). Even when the Congress formed the UPA with the Left and other allies there was a coordination committee in place. This kind of apparatus is missing in the INDIA bloc which hasn’t had any meaningful meetings so far except the one in which they chose their name. As the only national party in the alliance, the Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge has been appointed as the chief of the INDIA bloc. But he still needs a convenor to run coordination between the allies. Initially Nitish Kumar’s name was mooted for this post but after he quit the alliance no other name has come forth, even though there are others such as Sharad Pawar and DMK’s Stalin who could play this role. In the meanwhile Mamata Banerjee has let it be known that she would not be averse to replacing Kharge as the chief of the alliance. Go figure.
With the BJP’s morale having been restored post Maharashtra and Haryana, the opposition would do well to get its act together as the next hurdle is not too far off. Both Delhi & Bihar are slated to go to polls next year, and Uttar Pradesh & Punjab in 2027. In all these states, the Congress will be fighting the BJP, as will some key members of the INDIA bloc. It’s time to get a coalition dharma in place.
