A Whatsapp message just arrived. It is from Dola Sen, Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament from West Bengal ruling party Trinamool. Trinamool of course means grassroots and the message is written in the cheerful colors of the political party – green and white – and it reads “I.N.D.I.A…….Indian National Democratic Inclusive Alliance……Chak De India. ‘Ebar lodrai hobey, khela hobey’.”
The words signal an extremely important development in Indian politics. They signify that the countdown to the Parliamentary elections of 2024 has actually begun. They indicate that the second “Opposition Unity” meeting which was held in Bengaluru yesterday and today was a “success”. Indeed, the leaders of India’s political parties opposed to the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, could perhaps not come up with a more powerful name for the union. The acronym I.N.D.I.A is the quintessential winner of a word, which even the NDA government, against whom it will no doubt be bandied for the next few months until the Parliamentary elections are held, will have to owe allegiance to. The name “India” was a masterstroke and it is a symbol of the success of the meeting.
“India will win,” thundered West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee speaking at the conclusion of the two-day “Opposition Unity” meeting in Bengaluru. If it was the second meeting of top leaders of India’s political parties which decided to join forces to fight against the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre in the Parliamentary Elections of 2024, the first meeting was held less than a month ago, on June 23, in Patna. Like the first meeting, which was hosted by Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, this meeting can be deemed to be a “success” not just as indicated by the emerging brand name, but also as far as speaking in one voice was concerned. As all the Opposition leaders stood up at the conclusion of the meeting and joined hands under an overhead banner, proclaiming in bold letters the message, “United We Stand”, there were fewer apparent signs of disagreements between them. Earlier attempts to unite had often crumbled because of internal disagreements which included the inability to come up with a “common minimum program”. Suvendu Adhikari, BJP leader and the leader of Opposition in the Bengal Assembly, had referred to this, when yesterday he scoffed at the meeting of the Opposition parties saying, “This union has no future. They keep trying to form these every so often. They tried to form one in 2019 (before the Parliamentary elections of that year) but these never take off.”
However, things appear to be a little different this time around. At the conclusion of the meeting today, the Opposition leaders appeared to be more resolute to move ahead with the agenda pushing aside their differences. In fact, Didi, whose name has been coming up in the context of the projection of a Prime Ministerial face in the scenario that such an Opposition union does defeat the BJP, announced that Rahul Gandhi was a “favorite”. Speculations galore on what exactly she meant. But her rejoinder that he and the younger generation of politicians were “our future” was a giveaway. Clearly she is completely okay with his face doing the rounds as a future leader on posters and banners around India before the Parliamentary elections.
Dola Sen tells this correspondent in an interview, “Mamata Banerjee has no other agenda than to see that the BJP government is toppled in the Parliamentary elections of 2024.”
During her speech, Mamata reiterated. “The country will win!” as though the challenge was against an external force. The election strategy here is the astute politician’s ostracism of the rival even if that rival is the “enemy within”. Didi qualifies her comments with, “The BJP is bartering the country and democracy.” Of course in a show of strength and in an attempt to rival the Opposition political parties’ unity partners of the NDA government too have met today.
But there is a kind of challenge to the Trinamool message shared by Sen which exudes the triumphant call for a battle like the earlier slogan of “khela hobey” (the game is on) which, shared as a song on YouTube went viral during the West Bengal Assembly elections of 2021. That election of course was won by Trinamool. “Ebar lorai hobey” reads the message from Sen. It is as if to say, “This time it will be a veritable battle”. And in the inimitable Didi style of juxtaposing seemingly unrelated ideas which however is packed with meaning, the Trinamool message says, “Chak De India”, a reference to the movie by that name starring Shah Rukh Khan, which explores the theme of religious intolerance and questions the unfair allegations of being an “anti-national” against a committed sportsperson whose name is ultimately vindicated.