TMC hopes to emerge as nucleus of opposition unity in Presidential polls

With West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee trying to bring together the opposition to field a common candidate in the upcoming Presidential elections, her party hopes to emerge as the nucleus of the alliance by shifting the spotlight from Congress.

The presence of representatives of 17 out of 22 major opposition parties at a meeting convened by the Trinamool Congress supremo in New Delhi on Wednesday brought back the focus on her national ambitions which seemed thwarted by her party's dismal show in Goa and Tripura a few months ago.

Leaders of the Samajwadi Party, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), besides those of the Congress and Left Front with whom her party has been at odds in West Bengal, attended the over two-hour-long meeting called by Banerjee.

Representatives of Shiv Sena, CPI, CPI(M), CPI(ML), National Conference, PDP, JD(S), RSP, IUML, RLD and the JMM also attended the meeting.

Parties such as Biju Janata Dal (BJD), Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and Asaduddin Owaisi's AIMIM, however, skipped the meeting.

"The opposition parties discussed the need for a common candidate. In that way, the meeting was a success. Although nothing happens overnight, it was a perfect beginning," TMC chief spokesperson Sukhendu Sekhar Ray told PTI.

When asked whether the bringing together of various opposition parties would be limited to the Presidential election, Roy said, "The effort has to and will move beyond the Presidential poll."

Another senior TMC leader, on condition of anonymity, said that Banerjee had taken the initiative only after speaking with Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

"Mamata Banerjee spoke to Sonia Gandhi and only after that she had convened this meeting, and that is why senior leaders of the Congress were also present," he said.

After its emphatic victory in the 2021 West Bengal assembly polls, the TMC drew a blank in Goa assembly securing only 5.21 per cent of the votes polled. In Tripura too, it did not fare too well, but emerged as the second biggest party in the Agartala Municipal Corporation (AMC) after the BJP.

Another senior TMC leader, said efforts to cobble up an opposition front had to be initiated by someone as the "Congress is in complete disarray".

"The numbers for the Presidential polls are in favour of the BJP. But that doesn't mean we will run away from a fight. Opposition parties have to come together not just for this election but for 2024 (Lok Sabha polls) also. Earlier, Congress used to take the initiative, but now it is in disarray," he said.

The Presidential election is conducted indirectly through an electoral college consisting of elected members of the Parliament and legislative assemblies of states and Union territories.

In an electoral college of around 10.86 lakh votes, the BJP-led alliance is estimated to have more than 48 per cent of the votes and is hopeful that non-aligned regional parties will support it.

In 2017 too, the opposition parties had come together and supported Meira Kumar of the Congress against NDA nominee Ram Nath Kovind, who won the election.

Although the Congress and the CPI(M) declined to comment on the meeting, opposition BJP mocked Banerjee's effort as an "unfulfilled dream" of emerging as the face of the anti-BJP camp by attempting to divert attention from the political firestorm caused by Birbhum killings, recent violent protests over controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammad and CBI investigation into the SSC scam.

BJP national vice-president Dilip Ghosh said, "In 2019 too, Banerjee had made such an attempt but failed miserably. She has been trying to emerge as a leader of the opposition front, but there are too many contenders...it is most unfortunate that the state is on fire and the chief minister is sitting in Delhi."

Political analyst Biswanath Chakraborty, a professor at Rabindra Bharati University, said the meeting was "moderately successful" and the TMC boss's efforts are aimed at replacing Congress as the glue of the opposition front.

"The meeting has three-pointers: Firstly, it was moderately successful as many important parties such as AAP gave it a miss. Secondly, this meeting provided Mamata Banerjee a national platform, helping her to emerge as the opposition glue by replacing the Congress. Thirdly, she is trying to divert attention from the issues she is facing at home," he said.

Echoing him, another political analyst Maidul Islam, professor at Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, said it was a "good initiative".

"Given her credibility and experience as an anti-BJP force, Mamata Banerjee is trying to take the lead in bringing together opposition forces on at least this issue," he said.