‘Oppn Leadership Issue Must Be Put Off Till 2024'

The vexed issue of leadership of the opposition ranks should not be an immediate concern, says Congress MP and national spokersperson Abhishek Singhvi, who has good equations with Trinamool Congress and is also a key member of his party’s brains trust. Excerpts from a conversation with Subodh Ghildiyal:

- Subodh Ghildiyal

Given the post-West Bengal polls push for Opposition unity, concerns are that it may flounder on the question of leadership?

Politics and charity are two different things. Personal ambition must be recognised. But the leadership issue necessarily has to be put into a “thanda basta” till everything else is done and the 2024 poll results are out. It is astonishing that while we celebrate India’s diversity, we tend to be intolerant of diversity in political cauldron. This is what BJP has exploited and the recalibration of opposition unity for 2024 will reset this button.

The other key contradiction is that Congress and many regional parties are rivals in states.