Questions are being raised on the future of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) as differences among its constituents come to the fore and several parties call for serious introspection by the Congress after a string of debilitating electoral losses.
The latest point of friction has come from Maharashtra, where the Samajwadi Party has announced quitting the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), the state avatar of the opposition alliance, after a Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray leader hailed the Babri mosque's demolition.
The SP and the Trinamool Congress were also not seen with their other INDIA bloc partners during protests on the Adani issue, prompting the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party to claim that 'cracks' are appearing in the opposition alliance and it will disintegrate soon.
There are differences among the INDIA bloc partners on other issues as well both inside and outside Parliament.
Parties are now flexing their muscles within the bloc, especially after the Congress's shock defeats in the Haryana and Maharashtra elections.
They are speaking out against the 'dominance' of the Congress in the opposition alliance and asking it to be accommodative towards others.
Questions are now also being raised by some on Rahul Gandhi's leadership in the Congress.
Amid the disagreements on issues among the opposition bloc partners, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has expressed dissatisfaction with the INDIA bloc's functioning while signalling her intent to take charge of the alliance if given the opportunity.
The TMC supremo has said she can manage the dual responsibility of running the opposition front while continuing in her role as the chief minister of West Bengal.
All eyes are now on the Congress over its next move as the principal opposition party increasingly finds itself isolated in Parliament on several matters, such as protests on the Adani issue and farmers' problems, with many of its partners staying away.
The opposition alliance was formed in June 2023 with the motto of 'BJP hatao, desh bachao' ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
But one of its founders, Janata Dal-United chief Nitish Kumar, has since switched sides and joined hands with the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by the BJP.
SP's Rajya Sabha MP Javed Ali Khan said his party is still in the INDIA but admitted that 'differences of opinion' exist within the bloc.
"We are still a part of the INDIA bloc as we were among the founders. But differences of opinion on some issues among the alliance partners are there," he told PTI.
On recent developments within the opposition alliance, Communist Party of India general secretary D Raja said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge is the chairperson of the bloc and he should respond to the issues.
He, however, added that the Congress has to be more accommodative towards its partners and should do some 'serious introspection'.
"The Congress will have to do some serious introspection and ponder on why seat sharing was not done properly for the Assembly polls where it lost badly," Raja told PTI.
He said all the parties have to remain united as the INDIA bloc was formed with the 'BJP hatao, desh bachao' slogan and that everyone should work towards that goal.
"That is why the Congress must be accommodative to the other parties and should listen to them," the Left leader said, pointing to the poor performance of the grand old party in recent assembly polls.
JD-U leader Rajiv Ranjan said, "The INDIA bloc has always been prone to disintegration. Now, it is just a formality so that the effects of its disintegration could be transformed into reality."
He said during the Assembly polls in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, the SP expressed surprise at the Congress's stand after the latter refused to get into any seat-sharing arrangement.
"This alliance was visible only on papers but now, it will not even exist there," the JD-U leader said after the SP announced that it is walking out of the MVA.
BJP leader C R Kesavan termed the INDIA bloc 'opportunistic' and said, "It is a divided house of hypocrisy. The bitter bickering among them, which is now in the open, is because the INDI bloc feels that Rahul Gandhi's failed leadership is the reason for its repeated defeats in elections."
On Banerjee's 'ready to lead the INDIA bloc' remark, Rashtriya Janata Dal spokesperson Mrityunjay Tiwari said the leaders of all the constituents of the opposition alliance will decide who would lead them.
"Mamata Banerjee is a strong pillar in the fight against the BJP-led NDA government. Various leaders are leading from the front in their respective states," he said.
SP leader Abu Asim Azmi said, "The MVA never respected us.... Uddhav Thackeray and his party had said they would leave communalism and join hands with secular forces. However, he and his party have once again hailed those who demolished the Babri masjid. The Samajwadi Party can never stay with those who want to divide people on the basis of religion."
"We were never called for the coordination meeting of the MVA. We wanted coordination like it was during the Lok Sabha polls, but the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) kept fighting with each other over seat sharing. That is why we (MVA) lost (the Maharashtra Assembly election)," the state unit chief of the SP said.
The INDIA bloc's first meeting in Patna was hosted by Nitish Kumar. At the time, several opposition leaders had expressed their willingness to work together to defeat the BJP, while admitting to their differences.
"We will have to evolve separate plans for every state and work together to dethrone the BJP from the Centre," Kharge had said.
More than 32 leaders of around 17 political parties had attended the Patna meeting.
Gandhi had said he attended the meeting with a clean slate, "without any memories of past likes or dislikes with any of the parties in attendance", according to sources.
"We may have some differences but have decided to work together with flexibility and to protect our ideology," the Congress leader had said and alleged that India's foundations and institutions were being attacked under the BJP's rule.
"The message from the Patna meeting is clear for all of us that we need to work together to save the country," SP chief Akhilesh Yadav had said.
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