- Posted by One India, last updated on 18 July

India

author-Ashok Kumar Sharma

Bangalore. On Tuesday, the opposition parties have played a far fetched game by naming their alliance as ‘India‘. Now NDA will find it difficult to criticize this alliance by name. India – is made up of five English words – Indian National Democratic Inclusive Alliance.

Sonia Gandhi and Mamta Banerjee sitting side by side

Sonia Gandhi and Mamata Banerjee had reached the venue even before the formal start of the meeting of opposition parties. Both of them sat around and had a long conversation. By then it was time for the meeting to begin. When Mamta Banerjee got up from there and started going to sit at another place, Sonia Gandhi requested her to sit near her. When the meeting of 26 opposition parties started, Sonia Gandhi and Mamta Banerjee were sitting side by side. This scene is a good sign for the opposition parties.

Reconciliation after a fight

Even after the opposition convention in Patna, the relation between Trinamool and Congress remained strained. Three-tier panchayat elections were held in West Bengal on 8 July. There was tremendous violence in this election in which 12 people were killed. This number is being told more in non-government figures. Many Congress workers are alleged to have been killed. The Congress strongly opposed Mamta Banerjee on this violence. State Congress President and MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhary had said, law and order has completely broken down in the state. The situation here is very tense and worse. The state is heading towards anarchy. After this, the relation of Trinamool and Congress again became tense. If Sonia Gandhi and Mamta Banerjee are eager to sit and appear together amid this bitterness, then it is obvious that they are ready to forget the old things and move forward. It is known that Mamta Banerjee has had a close relationship with Sonia Gandhi since the time of Rajiv Gandhi.

Now unity only for Loksabha elections

It is being said that the opposition parties currently want to establish their unity for the Lok Sabha elections. The battle of the states has been kept out of it for the time being. For example, the Congress has a face-to-face fight with the Trinamool in West Bengal, with the AAP in Delhi and Punjab for the assembly elections. Opposition unity can never happen if this fight continues. If the strategy of Lok Sabha elections is considered keeping aside the politics of assembly elections, then the conflict of interest will be minimized. That’s why Mamta Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal are now seen with Sonia Gandhi. They believe that if the Narendra Modi government is voted out of power by this effort of unity, then future politics will become easier for them. So the first target is to defeat the BJP in 2024. After this the politics of the states will be decided.

Sonia takes initiative to improve relations with Mamta

Congress has also put forward Sonia Gandhi to increase its acceptability. Sonia Gandhi has given less controversial statements as compared to Rahul Gandhi. She speaks less. If a few occasions are left, she speaks thoughtfully. Big leaders of the opposition respect Sonia Gandhi. Leaders like Sharad Pawar, Mamta Banerjee, Arvind Kejriwal, MK Stalin can be comfortable with Sonia Gandhi. That’s why Sonia Gandhi also took the command to improve relations with Mamta Banerjee. This meeting will strengthen the efforts for opposition unity. As Mamata Banerjee said in Bengaluru, all is well.

10 opposition parties do not have a single MP

In the clan of opposition parties, there are ten parties which do not have any MP. Currently Congress has 50 (after Rahul Gandhi), DMK 24, Trinamool 23, JDU 16 MPs. That is, mainly these are the big parties of the opposition. His position has weakened after the split in Shiv Sena and NCP. After this, three members each from the four parties. Five parties have one member each. 10 parties including RJD have no representation in the Lok Sabha. Congress is the largest party in the opposition. This fact is known since 2019. But for the first time the opposition parties have accepted this reality. If this effort is successful, then it will happen for the first time in the history of India when 26 parties of the country will contest the Lok Sabha elections under the leadership of Congress. This will be a historic event for Indian politics.

(The author has expressed his personal views in this article. Oneindia is not responsible for any views and information presented in the article.)