Samajwadi Party chief and former UP CM Akhilesh Yadav,s jibe at Congress for a nationwide caste census with an eye on OBC votebank casts aspersions on the road ahead for INDIA bloc. Drawing on the message of social justice, equality and dignity for backward and downtrodden communities Congress is carefully crafting it’s template which certainly has made its allies like SP and RJD a little restive especially in regions where Congress is taking BJP head on.
Assembly elections to Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chattisgarh and Telangana are a litmus test for the grand old party winning these four crucial states will strengthen its say and hold in the opposition alliance relegating these regional players to a periphery. Being wary of such outcomes they are trying to raise the banner up and high with the likes of Akhilesh Yadav clearly leveraging his position in the backdrop of a scramble for OBC votes as SP is in a dominating role in UPs politics.
However, for an organisationally weak Congress in UP focusing on the grassroot should matter the most than infuriating and annoying Akhilesh further scuttling the scope for INDIA alliance to expand and extend electorally and otherwise. Congress instead of shielding it’s big brother image should shed this trait for the better hampering the co ordination and co operation between key stakeholders from AAP to TMC, RJD to JDU. At this juncture it should stay calm and patient refusing to make any noise to any provocations and remarks going to the drawing board for a strategy taking out the skin of hegemon BJP, s Hindutva narrative and rhetoric.
Certainly, Congress will have an edge if it succeeds with these satraps bargaining and negotiating their slice of pie clear on their agenda and objectives. Such posturings should be mindfully dealt as in this alliance a lot of twists and turns will be evident next month with the announcement of verdict to five states for these alliance partners who may feel the heat of it finding it inconvenient to get away with it. Congress appears playing it safely not revealing in a go hunting and buying time broadly taking everyone along minus optics and theatrics as it probably looks like
I would like to reserve my opinion for now.