Mamata-Stalin tie-up holds no promise

The enthusiastic welcome that DMK leader M K Stalin has extended to the Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee’s proposal that the Opposition parties divide their spheres of influence in fighting the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections in 2019 has heightened the chances of the virtual marginalisation of the Congress. In the past, Mamata has made no secret of her resistance to Rahul Gandhi being foisted as the leader of the combined Opposition. She apparently reckons that by setting up a third force, she would be further scuttling Rahul’s chances. By the arrangement envisaged, she perceives no threat to her dominance in West Bengal. Stalin, too, is looking inwards when he supports the Mamata recipe. He reckons that he might end up getting some votes of Bengalis in Tamil Nadu while he tries his luck in a few constituencies in Bengal which have a concentration of Tamil voters. That the Congress would not opt for an arrangement in which Rahul is just another player increases the chances of the Congress not being a part of any third force mechanism.

What Mamata and Stalin are failing to see is that if there is a three-way contest across the country, the gainer may well be the BJP on the whole with the splitting of anti-BJP votes. It is indeed shocking what a poor plan Mamata and Stalin have up their sleeve with the avowed purpose of beating the BJP. This is no way to challenge a well-entrenched and wily BJP which is riding high but could wilt under opposition pressure if the challenge is wellthought-out and strategically sound. Only a combined opposition can give a fight to the BJP in the general elections. The manner in which the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party were able to win two recent by-elections in Uttar Pradesh showed the way. But the Opposition’s problem is that they have too many aspirants for prime ministership and there is cut-throat competition.