Mr. Kumar had been at the forefront of championing a broad alliance of Opposition parties to take on the might of the ruling BJP in the upcoming general election. Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and the Aam Aadmi Party’s Bhagwant Mann, Chief Ministers of West Bengal and Punjab, respectively, have meanwhile ruled out seat-sharing with the Congress in their States. The alliance is staring at a crisis in the battle of perception and in building a robust structure for a joint campaign or election strategy. The Opposition parties may have to look at State-level alliances, and the possibility of post-poll alliances. The BJP, meanwhile, has ramped up its campaign, not merely to win the election but also to extinguish the last signs of opposition to it.

Source: The Hindu January 26, 2024 21:03 UTC