Why the No Confidence Motion?
There was no need of No Confidence
Motion. Neither the TDP nor the Congress
had hope of bringing down the Narendra
Modi government a year before its term ends. Yet
they went on with the debating and voting exercise which was not worth anything.
The TDP wanted to
use the vote to signal its clear break with the BJP. The motion brought to
light differences within both camps. While the Shiv Sena, a partner in
government, abstained from voting, the BJD and the TRS did not join ranks with
the other Opposition parties. How will
the BJP deal with the Sena’s defiance? But they need each other in Maharashtra.
If the BJP’s alliance concerns are
focused on Maharashtra, the Congress’s alliance-building will be hard work in
most States. Even the TDP does not appear to be on the side of the Congress. The
Congress is not in a position to dictate the terms of alliance in many States.
In Uttar Pradesh, the SP and the BSP are the key players; in Bihar, the RJD
will take the lead position. In Karnataka, the JD(S) is in a position to drive
a hard bargain; and in Tamil Nadu, the DMK is the leading partner. TRS chief
and Telangana Chief Minister K.
Chandrasekhar Rao speaks of a non-Congress, non-BJP coalition of regional
parties. The BJD counts both the Congress and the BJP as opponents.
BJP is too strong for the opposition.
Perhaps in state by elections it is different. People do not trust Congress or
other opposition as there is no consensus PM candidate. So it is going to be
Modi again.
Political scenario which exists
today cannot be considered to be of any comfort for the Congress. It is
unlikely that there will be a broad anti-BJP front at national level. If the
Congress leadership is thinking seriously about Lok Sabha election in 2019 it
must be clear about one simple decision: in which States would Congress like to
have an alliance or sharing of seats? It is not an easy decision. Congress is
confident of doing well on its own in 3 States, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and
Chhattisgarh. At the same time Congress would like to have some kind of an
alliance or seat arrangement with (a) SP & BSP in Uttar Pradesh, (b) with
RJD in Bihar, and (c) with NCP and some smaller parties in Maharashtra.
Question is whether SP, BSP RJD, NCP etc. would give the Congress a chance to
increase its strength in Lok Sabha. It would be interesting to watch
developments in this regard in next six to eight months.
The no-confidence motion turned out
to be a dampener for so called marriage of convenience of opposition parties. Modi
knows too well that his political juggernaut could never be dented with these
disgruntled and disparate opposition parties. Rahul Gandhi's antics at the
parliament on the day of confidence motion has miserably failed to pass grade
in galvanising a opposition
Humility and accomodation do not
come naturally to the Congress. In Karnataka, the desperate offer of the CM's
chair to Shri Kumaraswamy was followed by some tough negotiations on
portfolios. In UP and Bihar, with 120 seats, it is a minor presence. Instead of
triggering a row with powerful, ambitious regional leaders like Mamata
Banerjee, the effort should simply be to work out the modalities for straight
contests in as many seats as possible. The campaign itself should be
disciplined, focused on the incumbent's Report Card, no diversion to emotive issues,
careless remarks by senior leaders.
No comments:
Post a Comment