Will hyphenated I-N-D-I-A be able to stand up to NDA?

Grand Old Party sets the ball rolling for ‘Congress-mukt Bharat’ by ceding ground to its regional rivals.

- SHUBHABRATA BHATTACHARYA

Narendra Modi’s undisguised dislike for Indira Gandhi notwithstanding, he seems to have a sneaking admiration for the tactics she harnessed for knocking out her rivals. During the 1969 split in Congress, radio headlines daylong played up the moves of her rivals—Indira Gandhi’s stand, a resounding reply, was made known just in time to hog the prime time All India Radio (AIR) bulletin at 9 PM. (There was no TV news then, AIR, now called Aakashvani, was the only source of news breaks during the day; its 9 PM highlights usually were reflected in the headlines of next morning’s daily newspapers.) On 18 July, the news channels were agog with the Bengaluru conclave of 26 opposition parties, hosted by Congress. The stage seemed to have been set for a battle royale in 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Modi’s arrival at the venue of the National Democratic Alliance meet hosted by BJP in Delhi was covered briefly in between before the spotlight went back to the Bengaluru “uprising”. Just before 9 PM Modi started addressing the NDA session—all TV channels interrupted their animated discussions on opposition unity and beamed his speech live on their prime time slots. Modi had succeeded in setting the dominant agenda in a news-charged day.