Admittedly, the opposition INDIA bloc is gripped by a sense of despondency after the weak performance of the Congress in the four major assembly polls in recent times. While there were hopes that the grand old party would fare better this time around in a follow-up to the doubling of its parliament seats, the reverse has happened. Naturally, this has cast a shadow yet again on the leadership capabilities of Rahul Gandhi and raised a question mark on the strategies of the Congress to revive its fortunes. Rahul Gandhi is downcast though he was slowly building his political muscles to appreciable levels. However, this is the conundrum with politics. The ability to strategize and win polls is a matter of top priority for any political establishment. What is important is also to build the organisational strengths. The Congress fails here, while the BJP with its power and huge funds is hyper-active.
Every time when the stocks of the Congress are down, there are those who get active and seek to present themselves as an alternative force such as Mamata Banerjee. Her urge to lead the Opposition bloc and fight her way up to the PM’s post is no secret. She was lying low for some time when Rahul Gandhi’s stock was up. Naturally, this again is the time for her to preen her feathers. Talk is in the “air” to hoist her atop the INDIA bloc leadership. Banerjee’s strength is her fighting spirit that ultimately catapulted her to the rank of a central minister and chief minister’s posts. Despite her efforts to spread out, her party remains a state-entity. It lost ground in Tripura. To aspire to outwit the Congress and its leadership jells well with her high ambitions. Question is, will the nation opt for the Congress and its leadership or the leadership of a regional outfit at the head of a new government at the Centre. No regional chieftain could ever run a central government for its full term.
Banerjee’s USP is her street fighting as was also the case with the Communists in Bengal for over three decades. This has not helped Bengal revive its fortunes. Its economic growth was stagnant and its old clout faced ruptures through the stewardships of these fighters. The state hardly got its dues or any care from the Centre for many decades. Alongside, there have been some attempts at the behest of Governor Ananda Bose to break the ice between Banerjee and the central establishment. The BJP is willing to take her support for the “minority” government that PM Modi heads. It wants to neutralize the bargaining powers of both Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu. Greedy Babu and chameleon-like Kumar are unreliable partners. But Mamata hesitates to bite the bullet. For, her the principal electoral support in Bengal comes from Muslims. She’s caught between a rock and a hard place.
