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The alliance, cobbled together after much trouble to try keep the BJP-led NDA at bay, falling flat at the first hurdle of ‘seat sharing’, effectively depicted that the bloc was set up for failure from the beginning
Janata Dal United (JDU) chief Nitish Kumar took oath as the chief minister of the eastern state of Bihar for the ninth time on Sunday (Jan 28), hours after tendering his resignation after dumping the Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) formed about 18 months ago, while returning to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) thereby inflicting a crushing blow to the Opposition’s INDIA alliance that he had himself actively shaped. While Nitish sat in the chair at the governor’s house and signed the official document after taking the oath, he seemingly, in a metaphoric way, also signed the death warrant of the INDIA bloc.
Upon being quizzed by the reporters about why he was leaving the coalition, Nitish, before the ceremony, reasoned that it was due to the lethargy shown by the coalition parties and their leaders.
“You all know how I came to this alliance and also how I worked to bring together so many parties. But of late, things were not working well. It was not going down well with those in my party as well,” said Nitish.
“Nobody was doing anything after the alliance was formed. INDIA bloc failed my expectations,” he added.
While Nitish did not give the outright reason, the political corridors are rife with speculations that it all came down to the seat-sharing formula in the state. Nitish was not willing to give up on his party’s seats which eventually became the undoing of the coalition.
Notably, Nitish returning to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) fold is not a new phenomenon and certainly not the first time the JP movement leader has taken a U-turn on his political allegiances.
In 2013, before Narendra Modi was announced as the PM candidate, an angry Kumar left the alliance, only to return in 2017 before breaking up again in 2022.
Bihar has 40 Lok Sabha seats and it was the only state in the Hindi heartland where the INDIA bloc had its party in power. However, with Nitish gone, there is a great probability that the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) will sweep the region and further add to its riches.
Last week, the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC), a key player in the national alliance against the BJP, declared its intent to go solo in Bengal and fight on all the 42 Lok Sabha seats alone in the 2024 elections.
“I had no discussions with the Congress. I have always said that in Bengal, we will fight alone. I gave them (the Congress) many proposals… but they rejected them. I am not concerned about what will be done in the (rest of the) country… but we are a secular party and, in Bengal, we alone will defeat BJP.”
Seat-sharing talks have also hit a roadblock in Punjab, where Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is gearing up for a solo fight. With the bloc divided in north and east India, the result is all but a certainty for the saffron party.
BJP as an alternative and Congress’ credibility
Ever since the INDIA bloc was engineered, BJP has pushed the narrative that a coalition of different political ideologies will only lead to squabbling amongst partners if it comes to power. And it appears that BJP has been proven right. With the election canvassing trail set to kick in full motion in the coming weeks, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to hit this nerve repeatedly.
BJP claims that it provides stability and the pre-requisite conditions necessary for the country to move ahead in the development race.
Additionally, Congress’ credibility had taken another hit with this experiment. The fact that the oldest party in the country could not keep regional parties together, at least until the election, suggests that the top brass was caught napping yet again.
Shortly after severing the ties, JDU leader KC Tyagi launched a scathing attack on Congress, accusing the dynastic party of attempting to hijack the INDIA bloc.
“Congress is fighting for its survival. And it now wants to finish off regional forces,” Tyagi said, adding that Congress continuously pushed for more seats in states dominated by other Opposition parties.
INDIA bloc – a failure from start?
The alliance, cobbled together after much trouble in a bid to keep the BJP-led NDA at bay, falling flat at the first hurdle of ‘seat sharing’, effectively depicted that the bloc was set up for failure from the beginning.
Stitching a coalition that could brave the myriad faultlines of regional parties and egos of the different political vanguards was always going to be a stern challenge. However, not many could have predicted that the still-infant alliance would collapse so spectacularly, so soon.
(With inputs from agencies)