Bengaluru, July 19: As 26 opposition parties cleared their first hurdle of coming under a common banner, they brace for a bumpy road ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, from ironing out differences among constituents in states to seat sharing and choosing a leader for their INDIA alliance. The alliance – Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) – has resolved to save the character of the republic “being severely assaulted in a systematic manner by the BJP” and safeguard the idea of India as enshrined in the Constitution.
With challenges galore, sources said the leaders of these parties are looking forward at resolving them amicably as they all face the threat of turning irrelevant in case they fail to overcome them.
Though Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has admitted to differences within the alliance, he has urged all parties to set aside their conflicts for the sake of the country and its people, and move forward unitedly to take on their bigger common enemy, the BJP.
“There are some differences between us but we have put that behind… We are together in the interest of the country,” Kharge had said at a press meet on Tuesday after the meeting of opposition parties here. “We’ll fight the 2024 Lok Sabha elections unitedly and succeed,” he had asserted.
Asked about how the differences will be resolved, a senior opposition leader said that “let us see how we move forward step by step”. The leader hoped parties will be able to overcome differences and issues. Another senior opposition leader said, “While the fact that we had 26 parties come together for a single agenda is in itself a success. However, it has thrown up new challenges. Arch rivals in states have to find ways to exist alongside one another.”
The Congress and the Left are rivals in Kerala, the Left and the TMC in West Bengal, the AAP and the Congress in Punjab and Delhi, the Samajwadi Party and the Congress in Uttar Pradesh, and the PDP and the National Conference in Jammu and Kashmir.
Many contentious issues remain unresolved but the first challenge before opposition alliance INDIA is that of resolving the leadership issue, sources said and added that the grouping may not announce their prime ministerial face ahead of the elections to avoid conflict among constituents.
They said it seems, opposition parties want to replicate the 2004 model when they had ousted the BJP government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee and announced their prime ministerial candidate later.
During the press meet, Congress president Kharge had also announced that an 11-member coordination committee will be set up and its composition will be finalised in the next meeting in Mumbai. But when asked about who would be the face of the alliance, he did not give a direct answer and said the coordination committee and a convenor will also be named. (PTI)