Opposition unity on Meira Kumar candidacy is the way to 2019 polls

It was virtually a coup of sorts. Meira Kumar’s choice as the united 17-party Opposition’s joint nominee for the post of the next President not just stumped the BJP gameplan to corner the secular camp with the Dalit card. It also brought the major chunk of the secular camp back together on one platform.

The ruling camp, led by the BJP, was targeting to sow seeds of disunity by playing the Dalit card in the ongoing presidential election saga. Its managers are said to have worked overnight to pressure leaders like Mulayam, Mayawati and even Pawar to fall in line with Kovind.

But Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s master stroke frustrated the BJP gameplan. Kovind may be a Dalt. But so is Meira. The novelty of a Dalit presidential candidate is now gone. The group of 17 Opposition leaders felt comfortable and is now ready to take on Kovind next month.

Kovind will ultimately win the race. But the choice of Meira Kumar has brought 17 political parties together. It is a prelude to the much-needed secular Opposition camp unity in the run-up to the 2019 parliamentary elections.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at a personal level, and the entire Saffron camp collectively is extremely apprehensive of Opposition unity in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The simple reason is that the disunited secular vote share is much more than the combined NDA vote share even now.

The simple logic is that if the Opposition unites in the next round of parliamentary elections, it may be an uphill task for Modi to earn a second term in office. It happened in the Bihar Assembly polls wherein the combined RJD-JD(U)-Congress mahagathbandhan­ left Modi high and dry once results were out. If the Bihar model is repeated in 2019, the Saffron game could be over.

Naturally, the ruling camp’s gameplan for the next parliamentary elections will rest upon keeping the Opposition camp disunited by hook or crook. The presidential election scheduled for the next month could have been a curtain raiser to that end if parties like the SP, BSP and NCP had willy-nilly agreed to vote for Kovind.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi stepped in, just in the nick of time. Her managers finally manged a coup stringing together 17 major leaders of the secular camp together around Meira Kumar as their joint nominee for the post of next President. It frustrated the Saffron camp’s plans for now at least.

It is, indeed, a good beginning for the anti-Modi camp. But it cannot be treated as an end in itself. Modi is an astute political player. He would get back at the Opposition with a vengeance. His camp would not mind even using dirty tricks to wreck Opposition unity that has come about now. They may even try it even during this round of presidential election.

So, the anti-Modi camp will have to plan its moves to keep the Opposition on one platform. The primary responsibility would be of the Congress, the natural leader of the secular camp from pre-Independence times.

What the Congress president did here needs to be broadened further. The show of Opposition unity around Meira Kumar was brought about relentless behind-the-scene parleys in Delhi and other state capitals.

Frankly, it cannot last long only through backroom manoeuvres. It can only be sustained now by mass action. So, it is time for the Congress to go back to people on issues that affect them and force Opposition parties to stick together under people’s pressure.

India has never been so restless in recent times as it has been over the last one year. Minorities are being made to feel like second class citizens, Dalits are being once again forced to feel as ‘untouchables’, farmers are taking to streets after being under tremendous debt, traders have been left without much trade, medium and small businesses are reeling under the demonetisation impact, the youths are running from pillar to post for jobs that are hard to come by, trolls are at the liberals’ throat abusing them on social India, and the economy is not in the pink of health too.

This is a sure recipe of a major social and political upheaval in the making. The country is already bursting at seams with discontent. People’s anger is boiling and taking the shape of street protests like the farmers’ agitation. There is only the dearth of a leader to string together various social groups’ discontent onto one platform to bring about peoples’ unity against the ruling establishment.

It is time, therefore, for the Congress to go back to the people in a big way.

Indira Gandhi did it once she was out of power in 1977. She literally weaved magic as an Opposition leader, toppling the Janata government and then coming back to power in less than three years after being eased out of power. Her only mantra was her connect with the people. Indira did it by not sitting in Delhi but being with people all over India.

The Congress leadership needs to be with the people like Indira Gandhi. Various social segments feeling frustrated with the government will rally round the grand old party. Once people flock to the central pole of the Opposition camp, other Opposition parties will flock to a joint platform. It will surely cement Opposition unity which is the need of the hour for the secular camp.

Delhi is, indeed, a good place to make a move like Meira Kumar. But it is not enough to sustain its long-term spin off. So, it is time to go to people across the country to consolidate the gains from the Meira Kumar coup.

The battle for 2019 will not be fought in Delhi alone. It will be fought in millions of small towns and villages where the majority of India resides. A connect with them now could translate into Opposition victory in 2019.

So, time to repeat the Indira act to unite both the people and secular parties around a single platform. It will happen not only in Delhi but across India.