Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has blamed BSP supremo Mayawati for derailing opposition unity during the recently concluded Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. On the other hand, buoyed by the electoral success in Punjab, the Aam Admi Party (AAP) has made entry into West Bengal to make a dent in Mamata Banerjee’s citadel, the self-claimed face of opposition unity in India. Down south, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. K. Stalin is making desperate attempts to bring non-BJP parties of the region under one umbrella. But neither Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jaganmohan Reddy, nor Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao is showing any intention of responding positively to the call. Such a scenario clearly proves that the opposition parties in the country are in complete disarray and is no match for a well organised party like the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The fact has been proven in the recent Assembly elections in five states, wherein BJP has grabbed four states with relative ease. The victory is not only sweet because of the success in Uttar Pradesh, where the party had overcome anti-incumbency factor, but also for the improved tally in Manipur, Goa and Uttarakhand where unlike last time, the party received decisive mandates from the electorate to rule all the states. Surely, the opposition will have to do a lot of soul-searching, if they are truly interested in stopping the BJP’s juggernaut in the 2024 general elections.
Clearly, the disunity among the opposition ranks is solely due to the personal ambitions of each leader, rather than ideological differences or other issues. All leaders mentioned above have openly expressed their desire to lead the nation on several occasions. There is nothing wrong in being ambitious, the problem arises when the dream is not in accordance with reality. For example, to lead the country a party or leader needs the support of minimum 273 MPs in Lok Sabha. It is next to impossible for a regional party with presence in only one or two states to have the requisite support on its own. Every regional party needs the support of other parties to reach the magic figure. The popularity of a leader in a particular state does not automatically qualify him or her to become a national leader. But be it Mamata Banerjee, K. Chandrashekar Rao or Arvind Kejriwal, all have misconceptions about their popularity outside their respective states. Unless these leaders are able to achieve the same amount of support outside their states, they should refrain from nurturing any false hopes. Thus, instead of pursuing their personal dreams, the opposition leaders should come together to check BJP’s phenomenal rise since 2014. Presence of a strong opposition is very important for any democracy, otherwise the system tends to deviate from its path. The opposition leaders can take a leaf out of Farmers’ agitation wherein nearly hundred organisations came together and compelled the government to withdraw the three controversial farm bills after a year-long struggle. The opposition parties need such unity to pose a serious challenge to the ruling party. The current free for all situation will only help the BJP.