Despite all the efforts of leaders of the Opposition parties to zero in on the name of a joint nominee for the President of India, nothing concrete has emerged yet. On May 1, leaders of 13 Opposition parties came together on one stage on the birth anniversary of veteran socialist leader Madhu limaye, where they announced that they will form a front against the BJP and RSS. However, there was no indication on their Presidential candidate.
Sources say the process is taking longer as it has yet not been decided whether the candidate will be from the Congress or a regional party. The Congress is pushing for its own candidate. The party has been contesting elections almost every year, and according to the vote share, it considers itself the largest party in the country. Hence, the Congress leaders believe the joint nominee should be from their party. On the other hand, the smaller parties are pushing for their own candidates. Thus, the role of the left parties will be greater.
If the Congress fields its candidate, it could possibly be a woman, Dalit or tribal. Taking this into account, Meira Kumar would be the frontrunner. Sushilkumar Shinde and V Kishore Chandra Deo Dev are also said to be on the list. Former president of JDU, Sharad Yadav, is also in the fray and has also met Sonia Gandhi and other Opposition leaders over this. Sharad Pawar’s name is also doing the rounds. Sources say consensus can be reached only when Mamata Banerjee, Nitish Kumar, and Naveen Patnaik will be more proactive. The three leaders will also need to take Sonia into confidence over their choice.
Another possibility is sending an apolitical person to the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Irfan Habib was given a lot of importance by the Opposition leaders at the May 1 event. But there is no leader in the Opposition who can be undisputedly declared as the Presidential candidate. Some leaders are of the view that Pranab Mukherjee should be declared as the Opposition’s nominee.
CONG CAUGHT IN CROSSFIRE
Two big parties of the ruling alliance in Bihar are fighting. When the BJP’s Sushil Kumar Modi attacked lalu Prasad Yadav and his family for amassing wealth, no JDU leader tried to defend him. There were rumours that it was a veteran JDU leader who had given the documents to Sushil Modi.
Then followed the controversy over nepotism. Number 2 leader of the JDU and Rajya Sabha MP of the party, RCP Singh, said they didn’t believe in favouritism. Basically he was targeting the RJD and lalu’s family. So, the RJD responded by saying that the JDU is a person-centric party. The third controversy erupted over transfer of officers. The RJD said it has more seats but the JDU keeps sending its own people to the plum posts.
Now, the Congress has to play the judge in this bickering. The State president of the Congress and Education Minister, Ashok Choudhary, met lalu and announced with confidence that the alliance will remain intact as long as the Congress is there. This is obvious that whoever gets the support of the Congress will be stronger. That is why it is being said that only such a person will become the new State president of the Congress who will be impartial. Former Central Minister Akhilesh Singh had been with the RJD and has good relations with the JDU also. On the other hand, Anil Sharma maintains equal distance from the RJD and JDU, but has a vision to strengthen the party. Shakeel Ahmad is neutral towards both parties.
SIMUlTANEOUS ElECTIONS
Attempts are being made to hold lok Sabha and Assembly Elections simultaneously, and President Pranab Mukherjee, PM Narendra Modi, and the Supreme Court have given their consent on this proposal. Chief Ministers of many States are also said to be in favour of this decision. But sources say it won’t be possible in the next lok Sabha Elections. With all the hard work and sincere attempts, it can be done at the earliest in 2024. Niti Aayog has also given a suggestion to conduct all elections simultaneously in 2024.
Sources say that since the BJP has got a huge mandate in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, it will not want to go into elections only after two years. Same is the situation in Goa and Manipur, and the BJP will not want to face polls again after two years. There are many States where the Opposition parties are in power and they will never allow the Assemblies to be discontinued. Case in point are West Bengal, Bihar, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
That is why it is being said that maximum States can go into elections in 2019 along with lok Sabha Elections. Assembly Elections in three States — Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Odisha — are held along with lok Sabha Elections. Elections in Maharashtra, Jharkhand, and Haryana are held three or four months after lok Sabha polls. They can be held earlier than the schedule. Elections are scheduled in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, and Tripura by the end of next year. They can also be rescheduled to May 2019. For this, President’s Rule will have to be imposed in these States. lobbying in maharashtra
There is frantic lobbying for the Congress president’s post in Maharashtra. At present, former CM Ashok Chavan is incharge of the party. Narayan Rane — who had been in the Shiv Sena — is also staking claim for the post, and has put the Congress high command in a dilemma. Some say if Rane is not give the State president post, he might leave the party. Recently, there was news that he had met the BJP president Amit Shah. Rane’s son, Nilesh and Nitesh, have also given an indication that they are in talks with the BJP.
Whether or not Rane gets the party reins in the State, it is certain that Chavan will be removed. The party could give the command to any Maratha leader. The leader in Maharashtra Assembly, Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, is also a Maratha. Many leaders are demanding that a Dalit or OBC be made the State president. They are lobbying for Sushilkumar Shinde, but he could be made a general secretary in the AICC.