The clamour for all opposition parties to come together to defeat the BJP in the ensuing 2019 elections gained momentum in the wake of the saffron party successfully being denied to form the government in Karnataka State despite the fact that it emerged as the single largest party in the recently held elections to the State Assembly.
The BJP won as many as 104 Assembly seats while the Congress which was ruling Karnataka could get only 78 seats and the JD(S) pocketed 38 seats in the 222 Assembly constituencies out of 224 constituencies which went to polls on May 12. However, Congress realizing that the BJP might form the government and thus for the first time rule a Southern State with the help of other parties, was quick enough to enter into alliance with the JDS and offered even the Chief Minister’s post to the party’s chief H D Kumaraswamy.
What is intriguing is that Kumaraswamy and his party which fought a bitter battle against the Congress and the incumbent Congress Chief Minister Siddaramaih, brazenly grabbed the opportunity to become Chief Minister by joining hands with the Congress, which was solely interested to ensure that BJP does not come to power for the first time in a Southern State. Thus having achieved success in this political game plan, the Congress President Rahul Gandhi stressed the need for all opposition parties to join hands in unitedly defeating the BJP in the 2019 elections.
Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were well aware that Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Ro has already started the exercise for the formation of a Federal Front and this move has received good response from different states and leaders of various political parties. Though KCR has been spearheading the need for formation of a Federal Front to defeat both the BJP and Congress holding these parties responsible for the ills being faced by various states, especially in respect of welfare measures for the farming community, there were also reservations among some opposition leaders on keeping the Congress away from any Front for defeating the saffron party.
It is pertinent to note here that during the recent logjam of winter session of parliament on the issue of Special Category Status to Andhra Pradesh, Sonia Gandhi planned a dinner diplomacy to counter the BJP. While leaders of as many as 20 opposition parties have attended the dinner conclave against the BJP, it is also interesting note here that the TRS and even the TDP, which had severed its alliance with the B JP , were not invited. Also it has to be noted here that when KCR in his mission to form the Federal Front has met West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC Chief Mamata Banerjee, SP Chief and former Chief Minister of UP Akilesh Yadav, former Prime Minister and JDS leader H D Deve Gowda and his son HD Kumaraswamy, DMK leaders M. Karunananidhi, MK Stalin and Kanimoozhi, though everyone endorsed the idea of an alternative against the BJP, but had their own reservations about shunning the Congress away in this regard.
As a matter of fact, KCR and his TRS leaders have even campaigned for JD and Kumaraswamy. Thus KCR was very happy that the people have not given a clear mandate to both the BJP and Congress However, the unexpected opportunistic alliance between the JDS and Congress has come as shock to KCR whose bitter anti-Congress stance is known.. What is more KCR received yet another set back with the Congress now trying to take a lead in brining all the opposition parties on one platform to oppose the BJP in the 2019 elections. However informed sources indicated that KCR is not bothered about the Congress manipulations to forge an alliance of parties against the BJP and would step up his efforts with more vigour to form the Federal Front against both the Congress and BJP. The speculations in certain political quarters that the present Congress and JDS alliance might not last long and there was possibility that it might even collapse before the 2019 elections, seem to have also come in handy to boost the determination of KCR to go ahead and launch a Telangana-type movement at the national level from Hyderabad. And as a prelude to this, KCR is also striving hard to emerge as the true messiah of the farmers by launching many revolutionary and unique welfare schemes for them like the Rythu Bandh programme of providing investment subsidy of Rs.8000 per acre per farmer to nearly 58 lakh farmers in Telangana State and many such programmes.
Though the clamour for forging an alliance of all opposition parties or a Federal of Third Front against the BJP is growing, one cannot ignore the fact that there are too many leaders aspiring to lead the anti-BJP movement in the country. Thus the big question is where will KCR stand in this yet another leadership struggle ?. (NSS).