Non-BJP parties are placing more emphasis on unity as a result of the win of the Congress in Karnataka. Another issue is that this joy was rarely evident at Siddaramaiah's swearing-in event on May 20 in Bangalore. The opposition leaders who had assembled there were only there for show. No overt evidence of opposition politics was there. Despite this, Nitish Kumar is making a valiant effort to seize control of the opposition unity. This perspective allows us to understand his meeting with Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi.
The question is whether the Congress will be willing to give up its leadership in order to maintain the unity of the opposition, despite these meetings. After the victory in Karnataka, will the Congress be ready to stay in the background surrounded by the oppositions, as it was seen till before the Karnataka elections?
Lalan Singh had presided over the formation of the JDU executive committee two months before that, but KC Tyagi, one of the party's top leaders, was left out. Tyagi's departure could not have taken place without Nitish's approval. In the same way other dynastic parties have a high command, JDU likewise has one in Nitish. But after launching his anti-Modi campaign, Nitish Kumar began to see the value in the same Tyagi. All of the party leaders are friendly with KC Tyagi. In order to mobilize the opposition, Nitish thinks that KC Tyagi's political ties will prove to be helpful.
Rajiv Gandhi, who was prime minister at the time, was facing accusations of Bofors brokerage in 1987. Arun Nehru and Satpal Malik had diverged from the Congress under the leadership of Vishwanath Pratap Singh. At the time, Haryana was led by Sharad Yadav's political boss, Devi Lal, and Nitish Kumar was seen as Sharad Yadav's man. He then began his anti-Rajiv Parivartan mission. When VP Singh, Rajiv's deputy, ran in and defeated Sunil Shastri, the Congress candidate and minister in the Uttar Pradesh government, in the 1987 Allahabad by-election, it provided an opportunity for the entire opposition to band together. Later on, Sunil Shastri joined the BJP.
However, there is no such unity this time. The Siddaramaiah government was sworn in on May 20 in Bangalore, but the AAP was not invited. Mamta Banerjee received it, but she sent her MP Kakoli Dastgar rather than travelling herself. Even Sharad Pawar did not show up for the event. Neither was Chandrasekhar Rao invited. The Congress had no intention to call Jagan Reddy.
Many anti-BJP regional parties are uneasy about how Muslim voters in Karnataka support the Congress openly. The anxiety of politicians like Mamta Banerjee and Akhilesh Yadav has grown the most recently. West Bengal has about 30% of its voters be Muslim, compared to about 18% in Uttar Pradesh. While Muslim voters in Uttar Pradesh supported Akhilesh's Samajwadi Party during the Ram Mandir movement, Muslim people in West Bengal supported Mamata Banerjee after she rose to power. AIMIM, which only addressed Muslim issues in specific states, received little support during either the West Bengal or Uttar Pradesh elections.
Despite the short distance between Hyderabad and Karnataka, AIMIM received fewer than 1% of the vote in the state's legislative elections. This vote bank switched from the control of the Congress to the AAP in the last two Delhi assembly elections. As of right now, and at least until the assembly elections, the AAP sees no challenge in Delhi. But it is certain that, as in Karnataka, this vote bank may revert to the Congress in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections rather than the AAP. Consequently, the regional parties' worry is justified.
Because of this, they don't seem motivated to put together a fresh opposition coalition under the leadership of the Congress. If Muslim voters in Maharashtra make up their minds, then whatever support Pawar has been receiving may slip away from him. This danger also exists with Sharad Pawar.
Nitish Kumar has nothing to lose. Since 2005, he has maintained his position as Chief Minister of Bihar solely on the strength of his reputation and lack of a significant political base. Previously, his base supported the BJP, but now RJD is on his side. Nitish, who has reached a certain age, believes that there is no danger in the almost last election of his life.
After the Karnataka elections, the Congress could hardly stick to its old stand. In any case, just by listening to Rahul's speech during the oath-taking ceremony in Karnataka, it is clear that the party is hardly thinking of giving the lead to anyone other than Rahul. The anti-Modi mobilization is currently capable of displaying numerous partnerships as a result of the Congress' own attitude, Nitish's efforts, and opposition concerns. The Congress must keep in mind that Nitish has always cheated, even the most close ones.