Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Counting chickens after they are hatched' that was published in Newsband

Counting chickens after they are hatched

Opposition leaders seem to be now planning to meet in New Delhi after May 23, the day the results of the ongoing Lok Sabha polls would be declared. Mamata Banerjee conveyed that it was necessary to focus on the counting on May 23 rather than a roundtable meeting on May 21. There were “similar indications” from Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati and Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav too. Telugu Desam Party leader N. Chandrababu Naidu had earlier said that he wanted a meeting of the Opposition parties around May 21 before the declaration of results. He had chalked out plans to meet all leaders personally before May 19,

Naidu is a clever man, but cleverer is Mamata Bannerji.  While Naidu has come to the conclusion of defeating BJP, Mamata does not think so. Mamata wants polling Agents to be careful in overseeing the counting process as more important than seeing Naidu. But what is the stand of Naidu in case his party TDP is defeated in the Assembly elections to YSR Congress,  and in such a scenario, will the united opposition  sit with him  for a joint action post election results announcement. Any joint sitting before 24 May is meaningless, and Mamata Bannerji is right in her assessment. Naidu wants Mamata, Akilesh and others to decide on a consensus of PM Candidate well before 23^rd May before some one spoils the party.

It is wise and advisable for all opposition parties to meet when all the election results are declared as suggested by Trinamool chief Mamata Bannerji. The fate of the country would not change. Dramatically which ever party comes to power we have the expertise of all the parties. If BJP gets a good majority it would not be of any use for other parties to meet next week. If BJP loses then there would be some horse trading on both sides bur more trade would in the opposition wing and naturally it would be another lengthy process.

Why TDP boss and AP chief minister N Chandra Babu Naidu is making hectic efforts to bring all like-minded regional parties together? Objective is to deny power to BJP. Basic objective of the opposition parties’ Federal or Third Front, a post-poll arrangement of regional parties, would be to create an alliance of anti-BJP parties. This is perfectly okay. Though this kind of alliance may be acceptable to the Congress party, leaders of most regional parties would not be comfortable with Rahul Gandhi as PM. Is it not true that head of each party, Naidu included, has Prime Ministerial aspirations? Can the Federal or Third front govt. be an alternative to NDA. No! Because: (a) the regional parties do not have a common minimum programme to deal with many national economic and political issues; (b) not one of them is having a leader with national, all India level image.

If the Opposition doesn't present a Front of all parties and give a letter to President to that effect before 23^rd, there is every chance of Modi torpedoing them by presenting himself as the largest single party and play a Goa or Meghalaya (where Governor gave chance to BJP) to the President who may readily oblige him in return favour.

The West Bengal Chief Minister may perhaps feel that "counting chickens after they are hatched" would only be a prudent act and therefore feels concentration of all should be only on counting.

The Agenda for a meeting should have some real meaning. Can there be a meeting to decide what the members have to do if there is a Tsunami next week? All the 21 leaders who built the scaffolding for placing the picture of the next PM are not sure whether the same parties will get any MPs at all in the new parliament. Already most of the opposition leaders did not participate in the elections as candidates, but waiting for the results. If they have a chance then they will resign their present assignments, and then contest again as Mayawati said. Many cannot enter through even Rajyasabha.