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Opposition tries to stave off Presidential poll meet crisis
The Congress, Left, and a couple of other parties were planning to hold an Opposition meeting on June 15 to discuss the presidential candidate and while these backchannel negotiations were underway, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee sent an invitation to 22 leaders, including Congress president Sonia Gandhi, and eight chief ministers who are not from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to meet on the same day on the same issue in Delhi.
Opposition trouble-shooters have begun hectic discussions to stave off a potential crisis that could jeopardise efforts to agree on a common candidate for the upcoming presidential election, people aware of the matter said on Sunday, citing a clash in the timing of key meetings that are provisionally planned for next week.
The Congress, Left, and a couple of other parties were planning to hold an Opposition meeting on June 15 to discuss the presidential candidate and while these backchannel negotiations were underway, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee sent an invitation to 22 leaders, including Congress president Sonia Gandhi, and eight chief ministers who are not from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to meet on the same day on the same issue in Delhi.
Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, the Congress’s key negotiator for the presidential poll, spoke to several parties, including the Trinamool Congress, the Samajwadi Party (SP), and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to find a solution. “We have also reached out to Telangana’s ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) to discuss the situation,” a senior Congress leader said, asking not to be named.
One option, this person added, is to defer the meeting since Sonia Gandhi is in hospital after testing positive for Covid-19.
The letter, with the plan clashing with a meeting of the Congress and Communist Party of India (Marxist), was unexpected, the people added. If the Opposition parties go ahead and meet on June 15 according to the earlier plan, it would now seem like Banerjee’s proposed meeting has taken place, a second leader aware of the matter said.
The person added that if some opposition parties such as the Left bloc and the Congress reject Banerjee’s invitation, other opposition parties such as the AAP, the TRS and the SP could take up the Bengal CM’s offer, creating a division in the camp at an early stage — well before the poll itself.
The presidential poll will take place on July 21.
“Sonia Gandhi, Sharad Pawar and I were involved in the planning for past one month. West Bengal CM’s letter has created a crisis,” said CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury.
A senior Congress strategist agreed with the assessment, adding that “a few leaders have created a first-rate crisis. Kharge is trying to do the damage control.”
In her letter, Banerjee said: “The Presidential elections are around the corner, presenting the perfect opportunity for all progressive opposition parties to reconvene and deliberate on the future course of Indian politics.”
A party functionary close to Banerjee said: “Didi has already held preliminary talks with some Opposition leaders before writing the letter.”
The main efforts of the backchannel talks in the Opposition camp, the first person quoted above said, was to convince Banerjee to drop her idea in favour of the larger meeting — a task they admit will be easier said than done.
While a section of the Congress sees Banerjee’s move as an attempt to grab a leadership role, another senior Opposition leader, who asked not to be named, refuted the characterisation and said: “It is within her right to call a meeting. Congress and other parties can’t let their ego overshadow Opposition unity.”
The leadership issue could become critical in the absence of the Congress leader, a second leader from a non-Congress opposition party said, asking not to be named. “If Sonia Gandhi is unable to attend, Banerjee, a seven-time MP and a three term CM, deserves to chair it,” said this person.
In her letter, Banerjee stated, “The election is monumental because it gives legislators the opportunity to participate in deciding the head of the state, who is the custodian of our democracy. At a time when our democracy is going through troubled times, I believe that a fruitful confluence of opposition voices is the need of the hour; to echo the deprived and unrepresented communities.”
Hours after the letter was made public, the Congress said: “The time is ripe to rise above our differences for the sake of our Nation and its people. Discussions and deliberations have to be open minded and in keeping with this spirit. We believe that INC along with other political parties should be taking this discussion forward.”
