What is BJP doing? Congress gets into alliance mode With 2014 in the crosshairs, the party tries to cement relations with old allies and seek new ones. Ashhar Khan reports Ashhar Khan Ashhar Khan 2013-07-27 , Issue 30 Volume 10 Print FriendlyPrint & Email Comment Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on google_plusone_share Share on reddit More Sharing Services Gearing up AK Antony (left) is in charge of pre-poll deals for the Congress Ads by: GetSavin Outdated Browser Warning! Check If Your Browser Needs To Be Updated In Less Than 3 Seconds! Browser-Check Gearing up AK Antony (left) is in charge of pre-poll deals for the Congress, Photo: AFP With the next Lok Sabha polls less than a year ahead, the Congress is looking at pre-poll alliances that could bolster its chances to retain power at the Centre. Party insiders feel that if deals with allies are not struck in time, it could mar the chances of a third United Progressive Alliance (UPA) forming the government in 2014. Indeed, the Congress leadership clearly recognises the inevitability of alliances in politics today. In Jharkhand, the party has already joined hands with the Shibu Soren-led Jharkhand Mukti Morcha. And the hunt for allies is underway in other states, especially where the Congress organisation is perceived as weak. Of the 135 Lok Sabha seats from Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, the Congress holds only 17. The party has started engaging with former ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). DMK MP TR Baalu met Congress president Sonia Gandhi some time ago, asking for support in ensuring DMK supremo M Karunanidhi’s daughter Kanimozhi’s election to the Rajya Sabha. The Congress readily obliged and Kanimozhi was elected. Since then, there have been two more meetings between Baalu and senior Congress leaders on a prospective seat-sharing deal. Mukul Wasnik, the Congress general secretary in charge of Tamil Nadu, was involved in the parleys. Details are yet to be ironed out, but the wheels have been set in motion. In Bihar, although the Congress would like to go it alone, it has not closed other options. Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and Lok Janshakti Party chief Ram Vilas Paswan are both keen on an alliance with the Congress. Another option is to ally with the Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal (United). Though the Congress has never been close to the JD(U), this avenue has opened up ever since it supported the JD(U) on the floor of the Bihar Assembly after the latter broke its ties with the BJP. Congress insiders say that the next time the Bihar CM visits New Delhi, he might meet the Congress president. In West Bengal, too, where the Congress is left with no strong leader after Pranab Mukherjee became the President of India, the party is keen on an alliance with the Trinamool Congress (TMC). Party insiders say overtures will soon be made towards the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC. The two parties had a seat-sharing arrangement in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls. In Uttar Pradesh, where the Congress has a seat-sharing deal with Ajit Singh’s Rashtriya Lok Dal, the Grand Old Party is also seeking out new allies among small outfits with considerable caste-based following. If the Congress wants a third term at the Centre, it will have to display some fancy footwork in Andhra Pradesh. The YSR Congress, the Telugu Desam Party and the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) are all against the Congress. An important ally, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen led by Asaduddin Owaisi, has also deserted it. As of now, the party is sending feelers to Owaisi and trying to sort out the Telangana issue that pre-empts any possible alliance with the TRS. The Congress’ alliance with the Nationalist Congress Party in Maharashtra seems to be the only tie-up that has remained untouched by trouble. Two small parties in the state — the Swabhimani Paksha and the Bahujan Vikas Aaghadi — with one seat each in the current Lok Sabha, supported the UPA-2 and may continue to support the Congress after the 2014 polls. Among other small parties, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) in Kerala, with three seats in the current Lok Sabha, will go with the Congress. In fact, the Congress is agreeable to leaving a greater number of seats to the IUML in the pre-poll deal. In Chhattisgarh, the Congress is in touch with various tribal fronts that it wants to bring within the party fold. Motilal Vohra, All India Congress Committee treasurer and Rajya Sabha mp from Chhattisgarh, has been asked by the party leadership to cement relations with these fronts. In the Northeast, the All India United Democratic Front in Assam is a Congress ally, while other one-seat parties like the Nagaland People’s Front, Sikkim Democratic Front and Bodoland People’s Front also support the UPA. With the Congress realising that alliances and coalitions are the order of the day, the party’s Pre-Poll Alliances Sub-Group headed by Defence Minister AK Antony, which was formed in November last year, is expected to become more active as the 2014 election draws close. tehelka/congress-gets-into-alliance-mode/
Posted on: Mon, 22 Jul 2013 22:36:42 +0000
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