Opposition alliance: Too wobbly
Summary
- A divided opposition means that its candidates will be fighting not only the BJP, but also their own alliance partners. Unless forces converge soon, its prospects of unseating the BJP this year will get dimmer.
For the opposition “INDIA" bloc to present a credible fight to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), it’s critical that it stays united. Yet, the grouping seems to be coming apart much before this year’s Lok Sabha elections. On Wednesday, Mamata Banerjee, chief of the Trinamool Congress Party, declared that her party would battle the BJP alone in West Bengal after the Congress party rebuffed its offer of two of the state’s 42 seats to contest.
Later, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann announced that the Aam Aadmi Party will contest all 13 seats in the state, slamming the door on any seat sharing with the Congress. A divided opposition means that its candidates will be fighting not only the BJP, but also their own alliance partners. This could split the anti-incumbency vote and reduce the opposition’s chance to pose a ballot-level challenge to the ruling party, which looks like a shoo-in for another term in power.
The Congress, given its national reach, sees itself as the alliance’s core, but regional parties have their own turf to protect from its encroachment. Unless a middle ground is found and forces aligned soon, the opposition’s prospects of unseating the BJP will only get dimmer.
