BJP-Congress War Over Odisha Train Accident To Unrest In Rajasthan Politics — The Week Ahead

From the rising political heat rising over the Odisha train accident last week to the tussle to woo voters ahead of the Rajasthan elections 2023 — here's what lies in The Week Ahead.

From the rising political heat rising over the Odisha train accident last week to the tussle to woo voters ahead of the Rajasthan elections 2023 — here's what lies in The Week Ahead. ( Image Source :PTI )

The political arena of India is expected to be a hotbed of blame games as various parties seek to take the upper hand ahead of the Lok Sabha polls next year. Moreover, a political blame game is also afoot over Friday's train accident in Odisha, which took the lives of over 275 people.

With the BJP losing the Karnataka election last month, it is deeply focused on the upcoming elections in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Rajasthan, and Telangana. The Congress, on the other hand, would want to keep its momentum, which it got with the Karnataka win, going.

Stay with ABP Live as we try to cut the clutter around the latest news from the political arena and help you understand what is likely to happen in The Week Ahead. Here are the biggest political developments expected to play out this week.

CONGRESS IN OR OUT OF THE 'UNITED OPPOSITION'?

The Congress this week is likely to decide whom it wants to send for the Opposition parties' meet in Patna, convened by Nitish Kumar. The Bihar CM is trying to bring all the Opposition parties on a single platform and field one candidate against the BJP from each constituency. This strategy of one Opposition candidate per seat had worked against Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi in 1977 and 1989 respectively.

However, the Opposition parties are ideologically too far removed from each other and Nitish Kumar's formula might not work. Further, the Opposition, especially the Congress, it seems, is reluctant to support the AAP in its campaign against the Centre's ordinance on bureaucrat posting. On the other hand, the TMC and the SP had earlier said that they would not ally with the Congress.

Apart from these issues, even if Nitish Kumar somehow manages to bring in a 'Feviquick solution' and convince parties to join hands, it would be a Herculean task to select one candidate from all the parties for a particular constituency. The meeting, as of now, stands postponed. Earlier, the Congress had sought a rescheduling of the meet to June 23 as Rahul Gandhi is in the US and wouldn't be available to attend the meet on June 12.

NO END TO RAJASTHAN CONGRESS CRISIS AHEAD OF POLLS

Both the BJP and the Congress are trying to flex in Rajasthan in order to tip the scales in their favour. While BJP blew its poll bugle with PM Modi's visit last week, Congress sought to downplay the obvious rift between CM Ashok Gehlot and former Deputy CM Sachin Pilot. Despite the Congress's claims that Gehlot and Pilot are united, it is quite obvious that the CM and the former deputy CM do not see eye to eye.

While the BJP has brought in PM Modi for campaigning in Rajasthan early on, the Congress has had to issue a clarification twice — in a week — that Pilot and Gehlot were going to fight the polls unitedly.

Moreover, reacting to the Rajasthan government's announcement of 100 free units of electricity, the BJP said that it was due to the pressure that the Congress is feeling after PM Modi's visit. Soon after that, Rajasthan minister Govind Ram Meghwal alleged that he was offered money to topple the Gehlot government.

It now remains to be seen how whether the Congress furnishes proof of the allegations and how the BJP reacts. It would also be interesting to see how the Pilot-Gehlot saga plays out this week.

SPURT OF DEMANDS FOR RESIGNATION

The Congress has demanded Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw's resignation over last week's Odisha train accident, which claimed the lives of more than 275 people. Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, too, slammed Vaishnaw for underreporting the number of deaths in the three-way train accident. Vaishnaw has since responded, saying that this is not the time to play politics but ensure that restoration and relief works are expedited.

The BJP on the other hand has demanded that Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, who's rallying the Opposition against the BJP for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, resign, taking responsibility for the collapse of an under-construction bridge in Bhagalpur. BJP leader Amit Malviya said Kumar and Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav must resign and set an example for the whole country.

It now remains to be seen whether the responsibility is fixed in each of the above cases and what steps the respective governments take.

WRESTLERS' PROTEST LIKELY TO INTENSIFY

The wrestlers' protest is likely to intensify and spread out even more strongly across the country later this week. Farmers' organisations, under the Bharatiya Kisan Union, have now joined the protest, demanding "justice for the daughters of the nation". 

BKU leader Rakesh Tikait said that if the Delhi Police fails to arrest Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh by June 9, they will launch a massive country wide agitation. Tikait himself would lead a BKU segment to Jantar Mantar where they, along with the wrestlers, would sit on a protest.

Stay tuned to ABP Live as we track the updates on these stories and more.