INDIA holds 'informal meeting' as gathering postponed after allies skip
The Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) held an informal meeting of the bloc's floor leaders at Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge's residence on Wednesday. This comes after the scheduled gathering of party chiefs was postponed to December 17. Key leaders, including Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin, and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, had said they wouldn't be able to attend the meeting on Wednesday.
Why does this story matter?
The INDIA bloc is a joint platform created to challenge the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The gathering aimed to outline the opposition's strategy for the upcoming elections after the Congress recently suffered a defeat in three state assembly polls. The leaders skipping the meeting hints at the infighting within the alliance as regional parties were reportedly upset with the Congress hogging the leadership and not conceding to the demands of seat sharing.
Reasons leaders gave for skipping meeting
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) president Lalu Prasad Yadav announced that the formal meeting has been rescheduled for December 17, and the leaders will continue to meet informally until then. Among the reasons given for skipping the meeting, Kumar cited his illness, Banerjee mentioned a family wedding, Stalin said he was busy dealing with floods in his state, and Soren cited government engagements. Akhilesh's absence comes after his caustic statements against the grand old party.
Congress under fire from allies
The Congress party faced backlash from its allies for sidelining them during critical assembly elections, resulting in defeat in three Hindi heartland states. Many leaders reportedly claimed that the Congress made a mistake by not collaborating with regional parties and attempting to battle the BJP independently. However, Kumar dismissed speculations that he would not attend the alliance's meetings. Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Priyanka Chaturvedi also insisted that there is no discord within the alliance.
INDIA bloc for optics, not real politics: Meghwal
Meanwhile, BJP leader and Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal attacked the INDIA bloc, saying that the alliance was formed just for optics and not real politics. He cited Congress stalwart and former Madhya Pradesh CM Kamal Nath's unpleasant remarks against Akhilesh. The Samajwadi Party also blamed Nath's "indecent remarks" against its chief for Congress's defeat in Madhya Pradesh. Nath disregarded Akhilesh in a statement after the latter accused the Congress of betrayal and rejected his request for seat sharing.
JD(U) allegedly demands to be INDIA's convenor
Kumar's Janata Dal (United) has allegedly demanded that it be the alliance's convener. Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Sanjay Raut said no such demand has been made, adding that discussions will be held in case there is such a demand. While the INDIA bloc was formed in July, the convener of the joint front has not been decided upon so far apart from a chairperson. The convener is likely to be projected as the coalition's prime ministerial candidate.
