Mamata and Akhilesh are preventing Congress from becoming the big boss of the opposition.
Recently, Akhilesh met Mamta in Kolkata. After which, the headlines of the Third Front had caught hold. Many parties are uniting for the Third Front in the upcoming elections. Mamta Banerjee and Akhilesh Yadav do not accept that Congress should become the big boss of the opposition. That’s why both are engaged in the campaign to displace the Congress from the central politics of the opposition. Akhilesh Yadav has talked about maintaining equal distance between the BJP and Congress. He is standing with Mamta Banerjee in the fight with the BJP. He has said that since Didi stopped the BJP in West Bengal, he will be with her in the 2024 elections. Does Akhilesh Yadav’s statement mean that Mamata Banerjee will become the opposition’s prime ministerial face in 2024?
SP-Trinamool’s distance from Congress increased.
In the second part of the budget session of Parliament, the distance between Congress and other opposition parties seems to be increasing. The UPA’s allies are not supporting Congress in encircling the BJP. Congress staged a sit-in in the Parliament premises to demand a JPC on the Adani issue. Many leaders, including Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, participated in it. But SP and Trinamool distanced themselves from this dharna. Opposition parties are shying away from defending Rahul Gandhi in the London episode. The current war of words in the Parliament session has turned into a nose-to-nose fight between the BJP and Congress. If Rahul Gandhi gets an edge, he can become the hero of the opposition. That’s why SP did not join the strike of the Trinamool Congress. In this fight between Congress and the BJP, parties like the Biju Janata Dal, the YSR Congress, and the Telugu Desam Party have kept their mouths shut.
Akhilesh Yadav rejected Congress.
Akhilesh Yadav, an ally of the Congress, has now turned his back. The outline of a new political equation has started to take shape following the meeting of the National Executive of the SP held in Kolkata. After coming to Kolkata, Akhilesh rejected the Congress. What he has said means that now Congress has no existence in Uttar Pradesh. When asked in Kolkata if opposition unity is possible without the Congress? Then he replied, “You will see that most of the same MPs (2024) will be elected who are neither with the BJP nor with Congress. Meaning Congress will have no importance in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. In Kolkata, Akhilesh Yadav met Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. After this, many believe that a third front without Congress is underway. Mamta’s opposition to Congress increased after losing the by-election. What problem does Mamta Banerjee have with Congress? The answer is in the result of the Sagardighi assembly by-election in West Bengal. It’s the beginning of this month. The Congress created a stir in the politics of West Bengal. The Congress considered dead in West Bengal, has done a miracle in this by-election. This seat belonged to the Trinamool Congress, but Congress snatched it. Congress candidate Byron Vishwas defeated Devashish Banerjee by around 22 thousand votes. The BJP stood third in this by-election. The seat fell vacant after the demise of Subrata Saha, a minister in the state government. The Trinamool’s defeat in this seat shattered the superpower image of Mamata Banerjee. Losing a ministerial seat is a matter of concern for her. Mamta Banerjee fears that if the Congress becomes strong at the centre, she will face trouble in West Bengal. That’s why they want to oust Congress from the central role of the opposition.
Can a third front be formed?
Same compulsion as Mamta-Akhilesh. Same problem with Akhilesh Yadav in Uttar Pradesh. They also do not want to see Congress get stronger. If a Congress leader is elected Prime Minister in the upcoming elections, the situation will worsen for Akhilesh Yadav. The win will strengthen the Congress in Uttar Pradesh, due to which they will have to bear political losses. Therefore, to avoid this possibility, the SP wants to realise the vision of a third front separate from Congress. Most regional parties consider the BJP and Congress a challenge themselves. That’s why they don’t seem to agree to make Rahul Gandhi the prime ministerial candidate.
Congress will not leave the political ground.
Amid growing pressure from regional parties for a national-level alliance against the BJP, the Congress has also made it clear that, though it is ready to lead the opposition, it will not give up its political ground either. Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said that no one needs to give us the certificate that we have to lead the opposition. Without Congress, any opposition unity effort would be unsuccessful. Putting the ball of opposition unity in Congress’s court at the national level, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said that if all opposition parties come together, they can bring the BJP below 100 seats in 2024. Welcoming this statement of Nitish Kumar, the Congress said that the party started it by inviting all the parties of the opposition camp to the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
