India is globally counted as a beacon of hope. A country with a steady growth curve in the third world is always set as a powerful example. Be it the enriching culture, and economic rise, lies a web of challenges due to a politically unstable scenario. Once the wind started blowing toward right-wing politics, the opposition felt insecure. To counter this, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), a political alliance of 27 political parties in India led by the Indian National Congress, was formed. The aim was to oppose the government led by BJP. When the alliance was created, the masses with anti-BJP ideology were assured that in the 2024 elections, the leadership change would happen. However, the recent development of the political scenario exposes the INDIA Alliance’s fragile growth. Let’s analyze what went wrong with this vast association.

INDIA Alliance

The first proposal for an opposition alliance was put forth in the meeting held at Patna, Bihar, chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on 23rd June 2023. 16 opposition parties attended the meeting. The second meeting was held at Bengaluru, Karnataka, chaired by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi. The name INDIA was announced during this meeting, and 10 more parties joined. The third meeting was held in Mumbai, Maharashtra, hosted by Shiv Sena President Udhav Thackeray. At this meeting, a decision was taken to form a coordination committee and reach a three-point resolution to fight the 2024 elections. Further meetings of the alliance discussed seat sharing and other agendas. Following their fifth meeting, Indian National Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge was announced as the coalition’s chairman and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was given the exposition of the national convenor. However, he turned down the offer and joined the opposite alliance in light of the political crisis in Bihar.

Seat Sharing Design

After the political sabotage by Nitish Kumar, the Aam Admi Party in Punjab and Trinamool Congress in West Bengal refused to enter into any seat-sharing arrangement with the INC. Mamta Banerjee, who was wary of associating with either Congress or CPI(M)

Joined hands with Arvind Kejriwal and held discussions with regional parties, including the Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh, the Rashtriya Janata Dal in Bihar, the DMK in Tamil Nadu, and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha in Jharkhand. Her idea was to create another coalition to counter Congress and BJP simultaneously. Meanwhile, K Chandrashekhar Rao of Telengana was out and about to form an alliance of his own.

Congress At The Helm

When the alliance was formed, expectations were pinned on the possibility of Congress overcoming its pitfalls with a solid coalition for its support. However, the alliance proved to be built on shaky ground. During the Bharat Jodo Nayay Yatra from the Northeast to the West, influential and powerful regional parties realized that Congress was not ready to compromise on their stature and wanted to be at the helm of affairs. This inadequacy to be flexible did not sit well with the other parties.

Of the 355 Lok Sabha Constituencies covered by the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra spanning 6200 KM, Congress won a mere 14 seats. The regional parties won 119 seats, and BJP won 235 seats. The combined share of the INDIA bloc is 38 percent, and the BJP, even without the allies, is 37 percent. The statistics prove that the regional parties are comparatively more efficient and powerful on their own to fight the BJP in the coming elections instead of being subordinate to Congress.

After The State Elections

BJPs win in the 3 Northern states, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan, has sharpened the North-South debate. While the BJP finds it hard to get into the inroads of the South, the dominance in the Northern states remains undefeatable. The alliances accuse Congress of going solo. They did not involve any of the allies in the campaigning and refused to concede the seats they had requested. The election saw that the BJP gained more acceptance in the tribal area than in the previous time. Like before, women’s participation has become a driving factor for the election for BJP. On the other hand, each member of the INDIA alliance is looking forward to personal gain and failed to see the larger picture as they had envisioned. This has caused partisan politics enabled by vested interests.

Pran Prathishta

The last nail in the coffin for the INDIA bloc was done with the inauguration of Ram Temple in Ayodhya. The INDIA alliance decided to distance itself from the Pran Pratishtha. While Congress and the left alleged that BJP had converted it into a political circus, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav and National Congress Party (NCP) Sharad Pawar politely turned down the invitation with an assurance to visit the temple later. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal maintained a poignant silence. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who later joined the BJP alliance, remained silent. The lack of compliance in how to deal with the invitation to the Inauguration of Ram Temple was an open visual of the crack in the alliance.

Future of INDIA Alliance

It is evident that India’s political landscape has changed drastically since the formation of the INDIA Alliance. Within less than a year, the alliance was walking on thin ice. With Nitish Kumar switching allegiance and Mamta Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal having second thoughts, the future of the INDIA alliance in the 2024 Loksabha elections seems bleak. The fact that Congress decided to hold the reign and refused to budge from the prime position even in the states where the regional parties had prominent dominance made the alliance weaker. The 2024 elections will witness one of the most unpredictable and volatile political landscapes in the history of India. The future of the INDIA alliance is yet to be seen.

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