With the clock racing for the Lok Sabha elections next year, the opposition coalition INDIA will conduct a major conference here to discuss seat distribution, a single campaign blueprint, and redrawing the united strategy to take on the BJP following the recent assembly elections, news agency PTI reported. Mamata, Uddhav, Lalu and various other leaders have arrived in Delhi for the opposition meeting.
West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee said a day before the meeting, which will take place at the Ashoka Hotel, that the INDIA bloc's prime ministerial candidate will be decided after the 2024 general elections and voiced confidence that the alliance will resolve all issues, including seat-sharing, to defeat the BJP.
She also disputed the notion that the coalition has taken too long to get things in line, adding that "it is better late than never." Banerjee expressed optimism that a three-way alliance in West Bengal between the TMC, the Congress, and the Left is very much feasible.
"The BJP is not strong, we are weak. We need to work together to overcome it," Banerjee told reporters in response to a query on the BJP's growing prominence, particularly in the Hindi belt. She also stated that she makes no distinction between the Hindi belt and other places.
Banerjee also dismissed the BJP's claim that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will run for a third term, claiming that 2024 is not a certain conclusion.
The TMC president stated that she is prepared to advocate for alliance partners around the country. She met with Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal to discuss the country's political issues.
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav told the reporters here that the committees created previously have been working behind the scenes and that preparations for the elections are underway.
Yadav stated that everyone in the opposition will do their share and that regional parties are extremely powerful.
"Wherever there are regional parties, the BJP is no where to be seen. Most of the regional parties are with INDIA bloc," the RJD leader was quoted by PTI in its report.
When questioned about Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's future position in the INDIA alliance, he said everyone's job is the same and everyone's goal is the same, which is to remove divisive elements from office.
On Monday evening, JD(U) leader Kumar and Shiv Sena (UBT) supremo Uddhav Thackeray arrived in the national capital for the bloc's meeting. He also met Delhi CM Kejriwal at his residence.
Developing a "core positive agenda," seat sharing, and a plan to stage unified rallies are among the major difficulties facing the opposition INDIA alliance, which will meet here on Tuesday.
According to a senior Congress official, the parties plan to use the unifying theme "Main Nahin, Hum" (We, Not Me) as a rebuttal to Prime Minister Modi during the conference.
The fundamental issue for leaders of several opposition parties who have joined forces to confront the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections is to develop an alternative consensus plan to defeat the governing regime.
The immediate difficulty for the INDIA group is to reach agreement on a convener, a spokesman, and a single secretariat, which is a difficult issue because to divisions among its components.
The BJP's recent victories in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh have also increased pressure on opposition parties to present a united front.
According to sources cited by PTI, the Samajwadi Party and the DMK are set to conclude their seat-sharing arrangements with the Congress in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. However, West Bengal, Kerala, Punjab, and Delhi continue to be stumbling blocks among the coalition members, with none willing to cave.
With concerns such as the caste census evidently failing to resonate with voters during the state elections, officials in the INDIA group may need to rethink their tactics.
The opposition parties, including the Congress, had gone all out to stress the caste census issue in these assembly elections, which were regarded semi-finals before the general elections.
Plans for united opposition demonstrations would also have to be determined soon, as the previous one set for Bhopal in October before the assembly elections had to be cancelled, according to sources.
The standing of the Congress, which was nearly wiped out in the Hindi heartland, has diminished inside the coalition as well. Equations within the INDIA group are likely to shift as other opposition parties contest its status as the alliance's pivot.
Undaunted by recent setbacks, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has stated that the party will fight the BJP with a constructive programme that emphasises people's needs.
With just a few months till the 2024 elections, and the assembly elections being a drag, the opposition group has limited time to recover its election narrative in order to take on a resurgent BJP led by Prime Minister Modi.
The Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) is holding its fourth conference. On June 23, it conducted its inaugural meeting in Patna. Its second conference was place on July 17-18 in Bengaluru, and its third on August 31 and September 1 in Mumbai, when the 27 parties accepted resolutions to contest the 2019 Lok Sabha elections together.