Kapil Sibal is no longer in the good books of Congress. Of course, he became Independent MP in Rajya Sabha elected by Samajwadi Party's backing.
But his 'sudden entry' to the venue of I.N.D.I.A combine's meeting in Mumbai drew strong protest from Congress leader K C Venugopal, a close aide of Rahul Gandhi and also AICC president Malikarjun Kharge.
KC Venugopal complained about 'Sibal's entry' to Uddhav Thackeray after which National Conference’s Omar Abdullah and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav had to intervene.
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| Ex Congress Minister was also part of G-23 |
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Major opposition leaders in the press conference made it a point to target media houses, claiming they are being controlled by the ruling side. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and president Mallikarjun Kharge said victory of INDIA in upcoming elections would also mean unchaining of media houses from the pressures being imparted on them by ruling BJP.
(Indian Express)
Nitish Kumar was over enthusiastic at the press meet to convince journalists and lensmen and women that once the Opposition alliance will come to power, the media may have 'freedom'.
Ting Tong !!
I.N.D.I.A coalition's drama begins: Mamata, other TMC leaders skip press meet in Mumbai
Once upon a time when it came to coalition politics in India, the so-called 'socialists' would be the first to fight. Be it the great united Janata Parivar of the 1970s or much later the off shoots of parties such as Samajwadi Party by Mulayam Singh Yadav or RJD by Lalu Prasad Yadav.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has fought with Lalu, allied with BJP for a number of years and now yet again has befriended Lalu and his son. In 1999 the day Vajpayee government was sworn in for the third time, George Fernandes was alleged to have 'dropped' the name of veteran Ramakrishna Hegde! There are many stories and anecdotes.
The socialists' syndrome has passed on to Congress and ex-Congress leaders. Personal ambitions and frustration have led to the emergence of Trinamool Congress, NCP and Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRCP in Andhra Pradesh. Even K Chandraekhar Rao (KCR) of BRS is from that club! Most of these parties and their leaders (founders) are known essentially for personal ambition.
In the Mumbai meet of the I.N.D.I.A coalition combine, Mamata Banerjee and her party had issues. This can be easily called beginning of the next stage of the theatrics.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee did not attend a joint press conference addressed by the alliance leaders after the meeting. Banerjee and her lawmaker nephew (famous Bhai po) Abhishek Banerjee left the venue for the airport soon after the meeting was over.
Their party colleague Derek O’Brien also gave the press conference a miss. Earlier, at the meeting, both Abhishek Banerjee and Derek O’Brien insisted with other leaders from the Opposition alliance that the most pressing issue before them was seat sharing. So it should be taken up with urgency.
Others had other problems. The Congress in alliance with the communists want to regain the lost ground in Mamata Banerjee-ruled state -- this is something she cannot encourage! The seat adjustments will only add fuel to the fire!
So Opposition unity remains an issue "by and large", as they put it. However, TMC sources insist they are with the I.N.D.I.A coalition firmly.
Reportedly even AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal had raised the bogey of early talks on seat sharing.
Like Mamata, he too is disturbed. The concerns flagged off by these parties are not without good reasons.
The Congress remains ever ambitious and almost desperate to bounce back.
The grand old party wants the alliance to field 440-450 one-on-one candidates against BJP across India. But it has other plans in Delhi, Punjab, West Bengal and Kerala.
In Left Front-ruled Kerala, Congress is the main opposition and hence there would not be any alliance with the communists in the southern state. In Punjab, the AAP is in power and principal players include Akali Dal and the Congress. The Akalis are at crossroads and may embrace BJP yet again.
In Delhi, the AAP has strengthened its grip at the cost of Congress. And in West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee has ambition to expand her base in north Bengal -- where BJP did extremely well in 2021 assembly seats. In north Bengal, Mamata has to handle Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the Congress floor leader in Lok Sabha, and a mass base leader in his own right !
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