How projecting Kharge as PM face will disrupt INDIA bloc

New Delhi: While much is being read into the proposal to name Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge as the Prime Ministerial candidate of the INDIA bloc in the 2024 Lok Sabha contest, it establishes the reluctance of top opposition allies to back Nehru-Gandhi family scion Rahul Gandhi for the top job.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal proposed the name of Congress President, the first Dalit as possible Prime Minister of the country, at an INDIA bloc meeting on Tuesday.

It is learnt that the name was proposed without any discussion about the important topic being held amongst the allies. The Congress chief, himself taken by surprise, did not agree with the proposal.

Kharge politely refused the proposal, possibly because he didn’t want to upset the party's high command. "We have to win first and think what to do to win. What is the point of discussing PM before having MPs? We will try to get a majority together," Kharge had told reporters after the meeting.

It is understood that several INDIA bloc allies see Rahul as the face that has repeatedly lost in the electoral contest against the Bharatiya Janata Party’s tried and tested PM candidate Narendra Modi. “Backing Rahul once again would mean betting on a contestant that has shown a consistent losing streak. The recent losses in Assembly polls have also not helped the cause of the Congress’ scion,” sources pointed out.

Several top leaders amongst the opposition parties believe that despite holding the nationwide, months-long Bharat Jodo Yatra, Rahul hasn’t been able to evoke much public sentiment or a change in the political narrative in favour of the Congress. Instead, they want a leader who is senior and mature enough to take over two dozen opposition political parties together and also attract more MPs if the need arises in case of a close contest in 2024, sources added.

Moreover, the proposal by Mamata and Kejriwal has also created a rift in the Congress camp as well. “Before you expect all of us to have consensus on the name of Kharge, first ask whether Congress has a consensus. Are they ok to have him as PM face? What about Rahul Gandhi's future role?" said a senior Congress leader.

Confining Nitish Kumar to Bihar

In the proposed naming of Kharge as the possible PM face of the INDIA bloc, the regional political games playing up at the national level cannot be ignored. It is believed that some regional leaders’ aspirations played a big part in the selection and abrupt proposal of Kharge’s name.

Though Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is considered to have taken the initiative towards the formation of an anti-BJP alliance by the opposition, this proposal has the potential to confine Nitish Kumar to Bihar in a single stroke. Nitish was apparently pushing for his own name- for the top job through repeated posturing in the form of calling for Bihar-like OBC census across the country and trying to set the national political narrative, ahead of the recent assembly polls.

It must not be forgotten that both Mamata and Kejriwal are known to have national ambitions and by eliminating Nitish from the race for the top opposition job, have ensured that their own skin in the political game increases, sources said.

The INDIA bloc may or may not finalize a joint Prime Ministerial candidate for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, however, if they want to offer any serious challenge to PM Narendra Modi-led BJP campaign they have to put their house in order soon and set the scoring of petty politics for a later date.