Many leaders, including Mamata Banerjee and Nitish Kumar are seeking to construct opposition unity. Unfortunately, this endeavour remains destined to fail as the political scenario today is vastly different from any other period in the history of Indian politics. Many proponents of this project have often cited 1977 as an example of efficient opposition unity. This comparison is not only inaccurate, but also misrepresents the contemporary political equation.
First and foremost, unlike 1977 there is no widespread resentment against the present ruling party. The Indian electorate has time and time again put its trust in Prime Minister Modi which is very different from the situation in the 70s where the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had lost credibility amongst the electorate. And thus, a large section of the electorate decided to vote against the ruling party when the general elections were held.
Secondly, all opposition parties merged together and formed a new political outfit, Janata Dal, to fight against the Congress, which negated any division of votes. More importantly, the presence of Jaya Prakash Narayan in the opposition camp proved to be the deciding factor in the election in favour of the Janata Dal. His presence ensured that all non-Congress parties came together on one single platform. His task was made easy by the fact that he was not running after power and was interested only in restoring democratic rule in the country.
The differences could not be any more apparent. Presently, there is no Jaya Prakash Narayan in the scene to bring all opposition parties under one umbrella to put up a united fight against BJP. In the 1970s, the people were looking for an alternative to the Congress party and got it courtesy of Jaya Prakash Narayan. Now, no leader is willing to bury personal ambitions for the sake of an opposition alliance. From K. Chandrasekhar Rao to Nitish Kumar, Mamata Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal, all opposition leaders are in the race to become the Prime Minister of the country, even before emerging as a leader of national repute. However, the fact remains that in terms of both popularity and acceptance, the opposition leaders are currently no match for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Finally, even more surprising is the fact that the opposition has ignored the organisational rigour and versatility of the BJP. Not only has the BJP performed well in big states, but it has simultaneously expanded its voter base in Northeastern states as well. This is indicative of the fact that the organisation has engaged with the electorate of this country and has convinced them to back its agenda over others. Even the scenario of 1977 was a result of prolonged social movements against Congress misrule. Moreover, in these regions, the BJP has built political alliances based on shared vision and ideology, rather than convenience. The project of opposition unity in 2024 appears to be an alliance based on convenience instead of vision and hence seems destined to fail as it currently stands. The opposition parties must unite as one and set aside personal ambitions in-order to present a formidable challenge to the ruling BJP party.