What gamble have Mamata Banerjee and Kejriwal played by putting forward Kharge’s name for PM candidate?

After the assembly election results of five states came, the pressure on the opposition to prepare for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections has increased. The main opposition party Congress has also realized its reality now that it is on the ground. Whereas before this Congress did not have time for India alliance. A total of 28 parties participated in the fourth meeting of India Alliance held recently in Delhi. The special feature of this meeting was that West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal made such a googly by proposing that Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge be made the prime ministerial face of the opposition alliance India Alliance. Due to which both Congress and BJP may get upset.

However, during the meeting, there did not seem to be a consensus among the members of the India Alliance on making Kharge the PM candidate. But this is an arrow whose firing has many meanings. Mallikarjun Kharge may not become PM but it is important to know why his name was put forward.

Why are Mamta and Kejriwal putting forward Kharge’s name?

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal are the only two faces of the opposition whom not only the opposition but also the ruling party people quietly accept that these two can actually give competition to today’s BJP. The way these two leaders have not allowed BJP to enter Bengal and Delhi is a marvel of their leadership ability and organizational skills.
Currently, all the surveys and political experts say that whether it is Delhi or West Bengal, it is a difficult task for BJP to conquer both the states. The biggest thing is that both these parties do not want to allow Congress to enter their state. Just 2 days before the India Block meeting, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said in Punjab that Aam Aadmi Party should win all 13 seats in the Lok Sabha elections. It is clear that Kejriwal is not going to give importance to Congress in Punjab and Delhi under any circumstances.

The interesting thing is that the local units of both the parties are telling their respective high commands to stay away from the alliance. In Punjab, both Congress and Aam Aadmi Party have made this appeal to their high command several times. In fact, both Arvind Kejriwal and Mamata Banerjee consider themselves contenders for the post of PM. Therefore, both do not want the name of such a person to be put forward. Who should be increased who is their true rival.

For example, if Rahul Gandhi’s name moved forward in Congress or Nitish Kumar’s name moved forward in JDU, then the name of Mamata Banerjee or Arvind Kejriwal would have been left far behind. Mamta Banerjee knows that if she gets decent seats in West Bengal, then she herself can be a contender for the post of PM. If Kharge’s name is put forward or he is made the PM, then there will be a possibility of getting a chance to remove him at any time and become the PM himself. Along with this, the credit of making a Dalit the PM by putting forward Kharge’s name will be given separately.

Who was shocked by Kharge’s name coming forward?

Media reports have claimed that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and RJD chief Lalu Yadav looked unhappy after Kharge’s name was proposed for the post of PM in the meeting. It is being said that both the leaders left the meeting midway and did not even attend the PC held after the meeting. The reasons for resentment are clearly visible. Before the meeting, both JDU and RJD had publicly demanded that Nitish Kumar be declared as the opposition’s prime ministerial candidate for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. However, The Hindu report says that Nitish Kumar got angry at the name of translating his speech into English. Nitish is a smart leader and knows well when and how to turn the issue according to his own. Manoj Jha has always been translating the speeches of Nitish Kumar and Lalu Yadav on such occasions. There was nothing new in this. In such a situation, when Nitish Kumar’s speech ended on Tuesday, DMK leader Baalu asked Manoj Jha to translate. The Hindu has written quoting sources that Manoj Jha was about to start the translation on the request of Baalu, when Nitish Kumar got angry at DMK leaders.

Nitish Kumar vented his anger somewhere. And played in the name of Hindi. Whereas at that time there was no need for it anywhere. But this is the wonder of a seasoned leader. Nitish said that Hindi is the national language of the country and this language should be understood by everyone. Nitish Kumar continued speaking on this for the next few minutes. Sources say that Nitish Kumar started talking about India’s freedom movement against the British and the imposition of English. Many leaders tried to pacify Nitish Kumar. After this, the speeches of both Nitish Kumar and Lalu Yadav were not translated into English. The immediate effect was that the leaders who usually speak Hindi also started speaking English. The name of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal was also included in these.

Preparing to eat the cream by placing a gun on Kharge’s shoulder

Those who take the politics of Mamata Banerjee and Kejriwal lightly are making a mistake. If only Kharge’s name was to be taken forward then both could have talked to Congress beforehand. But here, instead of making Kharge the PM, he wants to enjoy the glory of his name. Both know that at first Congress will not take Kharge’s name forward. If the name is put forward then the credit for making a Dalit the PM will not go to Congress but to Mamata Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal. And the second advantage will be that Rahul Gandhi’s candidature for the post of PM will go behind the scenes. Apart from this, both of them wanted that before any other rival’s name could come forward, they should give a name of their own on which no one could raise any objection. Kharge’s name is such that no one will be able to oppose his name. Whoever opposes his name will become an opponent of Dalits. This was the reason that by not speaking on the issue of Kharge in the meeting, Nitish Kumar tried to avoid the issue by talking about discrimination against the national language Hindi.

Congress gets only benefit from Kharge’s name

Kharge is from South India. Everyone knows that Congress expects big support in the South. Anyway, Congress knows that it is not going to get many seats in North India, nor in the Indian alliance, and even if it gets a seat, there is less guarantee of winning. Therefore, we have to trust the South and play well there. Congress has already taken advantage of Kharge being a Dalit in the Karnataka elections. Congress has also got the benefit of Dalit votes in the assembly elections of 5 states. By making Kharge the PM candidate, Congress can try to capture its traditional Dalit votes again. 2024 elections could be the best time to capture Dalit votes. Because Mayawati’s Dalit vote base in UP may slip further this time. Mayawati’s alternative in the SC community is not ready yet. SP, Congress and BJP all three are trying to woo this vote bank. Even if Congress is not able to adopt Dalit votes in UP by making Kharge the PM candidate, it will definitely benefit in other states.

However, the news is that Mallilkarjun Kharge very politely rejected the proposal of Mamata Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal. But if a consensus is reached on the name of Mallikarjuna, then Congress can also accept this proposal without any delay. Anyway, Congress has a lot of experience of running the Manmohan Singh government in UPA 1 and UPA 2. During the tenure of UPA, complete control was in the hands of Gandhi family. On many occasions we have seen that whatever Rahul or Sonia wanted happened in the government. Rahul Gandhi had torn up a bill of Manmohan Singh and thrown it away in front of the press. Later the then PM Manmohan Singh had to withdraw that bill. Along with this, by making Kharge the PM, there will be a possibility that the dream of making Rahul Gandhi the PM will also be fulfilled anytime. At any time on any issue, Kharge can be removed from the chair and Rahul Gandhi can be crowned.