GRAND, OLD AND LONELY

After the Delhi debacle, several INDIA bloc partners are toying with the idea of forming a new front to isolate the Congress

- RASHEED KIDWAI

Brinkmanship, one-upmanship or sheer indeterminacy? The much-touted INDIA bloc, or opposition unity, is on its deathbed, craving an urgent, statesmanlike, hands-on approach, while most of its protagonists remain either indifferent or mute bystanders.

The most die-hard supporters of the alliance, including those within the Congress, however, remain optimistic that it will continue to breathe and stage a comeback in the 2029 Lok Sabha elections. Until then, the alliance is expected to maintain informal but effective floor coordination in both houses of Parliament and seek viable seat-sharing arrangements in states such as Bihar, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. However, Kerala and Bengal will witness acrimonious divisions among the INDIA bloc partners when assembly elections are held in 2026. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has not even decided to entrust the Kerala and Assam poll campaigns to two of his favourites-K.C. Venugopal and Gaurav Gogoi-despite the party's desperation to stage a comeback in these crucial states.

For astute political observers, the prospects of the INDIA bloc surviving the post-Delhi poll hiccups remain grim. Several regional parties, including the Trinamool Congress, the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar), the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray) and a section of the Samajwadi Party, are toying with the idea of forming a new front to isolate the Congress. This move is still in its nascent stage and aspires to bring on board Arvind Kejriwal, M.K. Stalin, Omar Abdullah, Hemant Soren and some smaller parties.