SPRINGING A surprise at the Opposition INDIA bloc meeting on Tuesday, West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC leader Mamata Banerjee suggested that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge could be projected as the alliance’s prime ministerial candidate. Banerjee was backed by AAP convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who she had met on Monday.
Addressing a press conference later, Kharge asserted that the alliance need not project a PM face, as the immediate and urgent task at hand was to win the elections.
With most of their MPs suspended, the Opposition parties have decided to hold a nationwide protest against the “undemocratic” action on December 22, the last day of the Winter Session.
At the press conference, responding to questions on the alliance’s PM candidate, Kharge said the Opposition parties first need to focus on winning the polls. The decision on who becomes the PM can be taken later, he said. “If we do not have MPs, what is the objective of talking about PM. So, we will contest collectively to win majority,” he said. “After winning, our MPs will follow the democratic process (to elect PM),” he said.
Sources said that no other party leader expressed an opinion on the proposal. JD(U) leader and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumarhowever, reiterated his stand that he was not in the race for any post including PM.
According to sources, the meeting, attended by heads of parties, also saw several leaders blaming the Congress for letting the alliance lose the momentum it had gained earlier.
Citing the recent Assembly elections, several leaders, including Samajwadi Party’s Ram Gopal Yadav, JD(U)’s Lallan Singh and RJD leader and Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav are learnt to have argued that the Congress should not have put the alliance on the back-burner.
In a tacit admission, the Congress leaders are learnt to have urged them to forget the past and move forward, focusing on forging stronger ties to take on the BJP unitedly in the Lok Sabha elections.
According to sources, there was a broad understanding that seat-sharing talks should be completed before December 31, and the parties should hold joint rallies and campaigns before the Ram Temple consecration ceremony on January 22.
Kharge said seat-sharing would first be discussed at the state level. If any problems arise, then it will be taken up at the central level, he said.
In the context of seat-sharing in the Assembly elections, some leaders are learnt to have pointed out that the Congress should have been more understanding and shown a bigger heart. In informal talks, the Congress leadership blamed its state leadership for the lack of seat adjustments.
“It was discussed that if all the parties of INDIA bloc had addressed joint rallies before the recent Assembly polls, results could have been different,” said a leader who was present at the meeting.
A resolution was also passed to meet the Election Commission to demand the maximum use of VVPATs in the upcoming polls.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
First published on: 19-12-2023 at 18:36 IST