Coordination panel, seat-sharing: Key takeaways from INDIA bloc’s Mumbai meet

The Opposition INDIA bloc concluded its third meeting in Mumbai today (1 September), taking another step forward in its fight against the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. More than 60 leaders of 28 non-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) parties descended upon Mumbai’s Grand Hyatt Hotel for the two-day huddle.

The grouping had held its first meeting in Bihar’s Patna in June. The second conclave in Karnataka’s Bengaluru in July resulted in the bloc announcing its name – INDIA, an acronym for Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance.

As the Opposition parties met for the third time, what new plans were discussed? What remains to be done? What did the INDIA bloc leaders say and how has the BJP reacted? Let’s take a closer look.

Coordination panel, Lok Sabha polls and more

The INDIA grouping has formed a 14-member coordination committee that will chalk out issues such as seat-sharing and a possible Common Minimum Programme.

This committee will include Congress’ KC Venugopal; Sharad Pawar from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP); Tamil Nadu chief minister and DMK (Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) president MK Stalin; Sanjay Raut of Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray (UBT); Rashtriya Janata Dal’s (RJD) Tejaswi Yadav; Trinamool Congress’s Abhishek Banerjee; Raghav Chadhha from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP); Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Javed Ali Khan; Janata Dal (United) or JD(U) leader Lallan Singh; Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader and Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren (JMM); D Raja from CPI; Jammu & Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) leader Omar Abdullah; and Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) Mehbooba Mufti, reported Indian Express. CPI-M will provide a name later.

INDIA alliance’s Coordination Committee and Election Strategy Committee:

1. KC Venugopal, INC
2. Sharad Pawar, NCP
3. TR Baalu, DMK
4. Hemant Soren, JMM
5. Sanjay Raut, SS
6. Tejasvi Yadav, RJD
7. Abhishek Banerjee, TMC
8. Raghav Chaddha, AAP
9. Javed Ali Khan, SP
10. Lallan…

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 1, 2023

There will also be four sub-panels that will work on issues, including a joint programme of the alliance, an action plan and handling of social media, joint campaigns and rallies, and research and data analysis to take on the NDA, news agency PTI reported earlier.

The alliance also adopted a resolution to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections together “as far as possible”. The parties said that they “resolve to organise public rallies at the earliest in different parts of the country on issues of public concern and importance”.

“We, the INDIA parties, hereby resolve to coordinate our respective communications and media strategies and campaigns with the theme Judega Bharat, Jiteega India in different languages,” the resolution read.

The grouping has decided that seat-sharing arrangements should be “initiated immediately and concluded… in a collaborative spirit of give-and-take”, NDTV reported.

As per The Hindu sources, seat-sharing arrangements are expected to be finalised by 30 September.

During the informal dinner meeting on Thursday, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee told the leaders that the manifesto of INDIA parties should be out by 2 October, reported Hindustan Times (HT).

The alliance also discussed “action on the ground” on Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary in Delhi, sources told NDTV. 

Hailing ISRO

The INDIA grouping also lauded the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for its successful Moon Mission – Chandrayaan-3.

“We, the INDIA parties congratulate the entire ISRO family – present and past – for its outstanding achievements which have made our country proud. It has taken six decades to build, expand and deepen ISRO’s capacities and capabilities. Chandrayaan-3 has thrilled the world, which is looking eagerly to the launch of Aditya-L1 tomorrow (2 September). We hope that the extraordinary accomplishments of ISRO strengthen the spirit of scientific temper in our society and give our youth the inspiration to excel in fields of scientific endeavour,” Indian Express quoted the resolution as saying.

No logo, differences over ‘caste census’

The Opposition group did not launch its logo today. Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut had earlier confirmed this, saying, “Logo is a very important part of the alliance. It is going to be discussed in our meeting but will not be unveiled today”, HT reported.

According to NDTV, the West Bengal chief minister objected to the political resolution of the bloc for including a caste-based census. However, JD(U), RJD and the SP backed the mention of caste-based census in the resolution.

INDIA bloc slams Centre

Taking a dig at the BJP, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said the INDIA alliance is making the Central government “nervous”. “We should be prepared for more attacks in the coming months, more raids and arrests due to this government’s vendetta politics,” he told the Opposition leaders, as per Indian Express. 

Addressing the media after the meeting, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, as per PTI, said, “Two very big steps were taken (today). The first step is to set up a coordination committee and also speed up seat-sharing talks. These are two powerful steps to defeat the BJP”.

VIDEO | “Two important decisions were made in the session. First, a coordination committee will be constituted, and second, a seat-sharing formula will be discussed soon and a resolution will be brought on this,” says Congress MP @RahulGandhi on INDIA alliance meeting in Mumbai. pic.twitter.com/mk2wl5YxKT

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 1, 2023

“The most important thing to understand is that this stage represents 60 per cent of India’s population. If the parties on this stage unite, it is impossible for BJP to win the election,” he added.

As per Indian Express, RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav told the reporters: “We were not together and Modi (Prime Minister Narendra Modi) was going ahead. Since we were not together, the country suffered. From the beginning, I have been fighting a battle against the BJP. It is Bharat Jalao Party, and it is turning out to be true. These people came to power after spreading lies about us.”

The RJD patriarch added, “Seat sharing will not be a problem. Even if we have to take a backseat, we will do so.”

Bihar chief minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar said the INDIA alliance will begin its campaign in a “systematic manner” now. He reiterated his claim that the 2024 general elections can be preponed. “Therefore we have to be alert. We have spoken about this (in the meeting),” he was quoted as saying by The Hindu. 

His remarks come in the wake of the Central government forming a committee headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind to examine the possibility of ‘One Nation, One Election’.

Delhi chief minister and AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal called the INDIA alliance not of “28 political parties but of 140 crore Indians who have joined in to create a 21st century India”.

BJP responds

The BJP hit back at the INDIA bloc, saying the Mumbai meeting’s only takeaway is that the Opposition leaders have “formally and politically” accepted their “give-and-take” principle.

VIDEO | “In the third meeting of the so-called alliance, there was no vision for development of India, no roadmap for the upliftment of poor, no strategy to address concerns of the farmers or women,” says BJP leader @rsprasad on INDIA alliance meeting held earlier today in… pic.twitter.com/VmASWDmOjf

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 1, 2023

Senior party leader Ravi Shankar Prasad told the media that there was no strategy to address the concerns of farmers, women and children and no vision for the country’s development in the third meeting of the “so-called opposition alliance”.

With inputs from agencies