Will the divided opposition be able to penetrate the BJP’s tough exterior as each opposition leader launches their own campaign against the ruling party?
Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Congress, has started the “Bharat Jodo Yatra,” which aims to walk from Kanyakumari to Jammu & Kashmir in an effort to reunite the nation, which the BJP, according to the Congress, has divided.
Arvind Kejriwal, meantime, launched his “Make India No. 1” campaign on the same day as the Congress, and has been vocally opposing the central government, and claims that the goal of the campaign is to hear the people out and bring them together.
Similar to this, Mamata Banerjee’s TMC has started her “Khela Hobe divas” in Bengal, where she promises to mount a nationwide revolt against the BJP.
The current chief minister of Telangana, K.C. Rao, and his party, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), have organized a large rally with the goal of uniting farmers all over the nation and ensuring that they are elected as Legislators. Additionally, KCR is probably going to launch a national political party in the near future.
Meanwhile, in Bihar, Nitish Kumar, after his relationship turned cold with BJP, had visited Delhi and had been keeping in touch with other opposition leaders such as Kejriwal, Mamata, and NCP’s Sharad Pawar and others. In fact, he has asserted that if the opposition remains united, the BJP will only have 50 seats.
In response to this, the BJP has started a campaign called “Mission 350,” in which the party is now paying close attention to all the seats it has lost in recent elections and is now working to get those votes back. The BJP’s new goal for the election in 2024 is 350 seats.
Therefore, the political fight for 2024 seems to have just begun.
But why is the opposition campaigning against BJP?
Since the BJP returned to power in 2019, the opposition has accused the party of abusing central institutions including the CBI, ED, NIA, NCB, and the governor’s office. This can be seen in the cases such as arrests of AAP’s Manish Sisodia, NCP’s Sharad Pawar, Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Raut and others.
Apart from the misuse of the central institutions, the present farce in Maharashtra, where Uddhav Thackeray’s government was deposed, has made regional parties across the country uneasy, as many fears that the BJP’s goal now is to depose regional parties after successfully defeating the Congress.
In fact, the opposition is now openly accusing the BJP of attempting to destabilize the government by buying MLAs with money.
Last but not least, India’s economy and roaring inflation, as well as a relentless growth in unemployment, growing economic disparity, attacks on free speech and civil liberties, and a chorus of divisive politics (dividing politics and disunity), have spurred the opposition to rise up against the BJP.
But is the opposition united?
Although the opposition appears to have one single goal, election 2024, and one common enemy, the BJP, there is little prospect that the opposition will ever come together.
According to AAP Spokesperson Raghav Chadha, “coming together of opposition parties will not bring any change.” In fact, he and his party feel that to fight the formidable BJP, a “new idea and a new vocabulary” are required.
However, the AAP is one party that is making both the BJP and the Congress anxious. While the AAP still has a long way to go in terms of becoming a pan-India party, the education model and health care system that it has delivered to NCR residents over the years has resonated well with the populace. This success has been witnessed in Punjab, and the support that is developing in Gujarat.
Meanwhile, the Indian National Congress and the AAP are nowhere near an alliance, as the Congress continues to erode the AAP’s popularity, at least in the media. Furthermore, Congress believes that, after the BJP, the only pan-India party is Congress, and that the opposition must realize the importance of Congress.
Indeed, many believe that AAP is now seeking to replace Congress as the major opposition to the BJP. The AAP’s Make India No. 1 campaign, which took place against the backdrop of the Congress Bharat Jodo Yatra, is a glaring example of AAP attempting to sideline the Congress party.
At the same time, popular opposition leaders such as Mamata Banerjee appear to be uninterested in Congress. As a result, the thought of the opposition banding together to oppose the ruling BJP appears to be out of the question.
Where is the solution?
There is no question that the BJP continues to sit comfortably and share their achievements, such as successful transactions met out to farmers via UPI, 93% of MSME benefiting from their policy, and delivering 130 Indian unicorns, among many others. However, according to various data, the BJP will not have an easy ride in the 2024 election.
According to many psephologists, the BJP’s 139 out of 140 score in Bihar might be reduced to a single digit. Similarly, with Mamata gaining pace, 18 seats in West Bengal are projected to fall. Following the Maharashtra fiasco, the BJP’s vote share is projected to fall with the Shiv Sena taking power, while the BJP’s vote share in Karnataka may also fall. So, it appears that the BJP has reached its saturation point, and the question now is, where will the BJP focus its attention next? But it is also true that there is no better political party in India that plays politics like the BJP does. The BJP’s job is to grab power and they execute it so well.
However, it is preferable for the BJP to stop sweeping problems under the rug but instead embrace the country’s difficulties, listen to people’s frustrations, and find a solution.
Meanwhile, the opposition must swallow its pride and form a pre-election coalition. At the same time, drop the idea of playing along “Modi versus Who” game. Politics based on populism will only benefit Modi. The opposition must localize its campaign and form a strategic regional alliance.
Arenjungla Kichu | Mokokchung Times