- The mother of all elections in India is barely a couple of months away. The major political players in the country have already begun preparing to fight it out in earnest anticipating tough competition as the big day nears. Yes, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance appears to be ahead in comparison to the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance. Of course, there is the fledgling INDIA bloc consisting of several opposition parties that have come together to take on the might of the BJP’s formidable election machinery. The stage is set for the massive election campaign to unfold in the coming days. All eyes are on the Election Commission of India to sound the poll bugle which is anticipated to happen in March.
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- The recently concluded consecration ceremony of Lord Ram’s temple in Ayodhya would solidly provide the BJP an opportunity to consolidate its core Hindu vote bank. The grand ceremony indeed succeeded in garnering tremendous traction among the Ram devotees in the country even as the religious fervor reached fever pitch. On its part, the Congress scion has undertaken yet another yatra to impress the voters on how the present dispensation at the center has failed the citizens on several fronts. The conjecture is open to question as to how effectively Congress would succeed in impressing upon the voters about the failures. Make no mistake, voters cannot be simply swayed away by mere rhetoric anymore. The statistics should speak louder than words.
- However, what started as a coming together of opposition ranks with a common agenda of taking the BJP head-on is facing challenges vis-à-vis seat sharing where the regional outfits are loathe to concede grounds for the Grand Old Party. The fissures are appearing more prominent by the day. The Trinamool Congress supremo has categorically ruled out joining hands with the Congress by declaring the party will fight alone in the ensuing polls. The Aam Aadmi Party Punjab too has made a similar announcement. The talks in Maharashtra involving Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray), NCP, and the Congress are stuck on a seat-sharing formula acceptable to all. Most importantly, the main architect of the INDIA bloc Nitish Kumar of the JD(U) in Bihar is all set to make yet another switch.
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- These occurrences portend trouble for the opposition unity when the need of the hour is to forge a strong alliance to extend a formidable fight to the BJP. The coming days will pose even more challenges to the bloc as the seat-sharing talks inch towards a conclusion. Mind you, these tricky issues were bound to come up since the regional parties hold considerable sway since Congress has lost much of its heft over the years. Unless the opposition parties stop pulling in different directions and stay united, the BJP will not have to worry too much vis-à-vis presenting an attractive narrative to the electorate. The onus squarely rests with the Congress to accommodate the regional parties as much as possible. Otherwise, the BJP will be looking at scoring a hat trick.
