Opposition unity picks up pace; Stalin ‘the man to watch out for’

AAP warming up to Congress, Kharge's outreach and DMK chief's rise in the grouping are signs of hope

Top leaders from Opposition parties are working the phones and have started confabulations to stitch an alliance to take on the BJP.

‘Operation Opposition Unity’, which was a non-starter till recently, has picked up momentum, at least on a few fronts. Logistics are being worked out for some sort of a show of strength in Delhi soon after the Karnataka elections.

But a lot hinges on a favourable result for the Congress in the Karnataka polls. If the Congress is able to best the saffron party, it could be the booster shot that could invigorate the efforts and, possibly, prompt the reluctant few (read TMC) to rethink.

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Two clear signs have emerged: the AAP warming up to the Congress and DMK chief M K Stalin’s growing stature in the Opposition grouping.

After a meeting of floor leaders in Parliament late March, where the Congress was asked to speed up efforts, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge kicked off the exercise first, calling Stalin, Uddhav Thackeray and Nitish Kumar on April 7.

This was followed by Kharge and Rahul Gandhi’s meetings with JD(U)’s Nitish Kumar and RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav on April 12, and with NCP’s Sharad Pawar the next day. Congress flew its General Secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal to Mumbai for a meeting with Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray.

But bringing such a large, fractious group of leaders — who have their own agendas and suspicions — is easier said than done.

Sources hinted at a subtle tussle that is brewing on who would be the linchpin of the Opposition.

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Curiously, they say, the culprit is not the Congress, as Kharge walks the extra mile to give space to others.

Sources said Pawar’s hurried late evening meeting with the Congress leadership was an attempt to check-mate any attempt by Nitish to be the pointsperson. Pawar has indicated to the Congress leadership about the need for a crack team of leaders to steer the Opposition unity process, and Nitish does not figure in his scheme of things.

There is speculation that Nitish could be the coalition’s convenor as the Bihar chief minister is said to have taken upon himself the job of reaching out to parties like the AAP, Trinamool Congress and the BRS among others who resent the Congress.

The Congress, sources said, is still wary of leaders like Nitish who emerged from the anti-Congress camp of socialists. The JD(U) leader still prefers a 1989 or 1996-type front sans the Congress rather than the 2004 UPA experiment where the Congress was the pivot.

But some success has been achieved. And this involves Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, which is feeling the heat of central agencies.

In a rare outreach, Kharge dialled the Delhi chief minister, much to the chagrin of Delhi and Punjab Congress leaders, to express solidarity with him after the CBI asking the latter to appear before it in the Delhi liquor policy case. Two top leaders from the AAP are already cooling their heels in jail.

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Now, it will be interesting to watch Kejriwal’s next moves. The AAP has fielded 210 candidates for the Karnataka elections. But the ‘broom’ is not raising dust in Karnataka after beginning with a bang.

Interestingly, Kejriwal’s close aide and AAP General Secretary Sandeep Pathak “left it to the country” to take a call on the next PM when asked in Panaji about projecting his party chief as the prime ministerial face. This is significant as the AAP has always thought of Kejriwal as PM material. In a way, it was Kejriwal who opened the door and extended the olive branch, as he supported Rahul following his conviction in a defamation case.

Stalin factor

According to a section of top non-Congress Opposition leaders, DMK supremo and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, a good friend of the Congress, will have a major say on the way forward.

Sources said the next big push for the Opposition could come from Stalin, who is rallying leaders onto the social justice plank with caste census at the centre of the battle to undercut the BJP’s plan to make it a Rahul vs Modi battle.

The DMK chief brought all parties together on a single platform on the issue and the Congress took it forward. Stalin has also announced the installation of the statue of former PM V P Singh, the ‘Mandal Messiah’, in Chennai.

“He may not have prime ministerial ambitions. But he is the man to watch. He will have a major say than any other leader,” a senior Opposition leader told DH.

While efforts to forge unity are on, Opposition leaders are “now sure” that there will be “distractions”.

“We predict more cases, arrests, desertions and pressure on parties. You can see what is happening in the NCP. If there is trouble, senior Pawar will have to devote more time to his party than using his clout to help the Opposition. The Centre may even arrest people like Kejriwal,” the leader said.

For now, the Opposition has its task cut out.