Some friction in INDIA amid push for Kharge as PM face

A day after 28 political parties, all part of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) met to flesh out details of a coordinated campaign against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, disquiet began to emerge within its ranks, with a senior leader of the Janata Dal (United) expressing displeasure at Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge’s name being put forth as the prime ministerial candidate, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar going into a huddle with his top brass and calling for a meeting of his party’s national council on December 29, even as West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, who made the suggestion, doubled down on it.

The meeting of the Opposition grouping, which continued on Wednesday, its venue moving from Ashok Hotel in the Capital to Kharge’s residence, came against the backdrop of an acrimonious winter session of Parliament that has seen 143 Opposition MPs suspended, and three weeks after the Congress suffered an electoral blow when it lost elections in three key states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh to the BJP, although it wrested power in Telangana.

On Wednesday, a reportedly miffed Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar met with his party top brass, including members of Parliament in Delhi, and decided to convene the party’s national council meeting in the Capital on December 29. To be sure, the party’s national executive was already meant to meet on this date. But the council, leaders pointed out, has an expanded membership of 200 members from across the state while the executive has 99.

“The two meetings will be held on the same day,” confirmed party national secretary Afaque Ahmad. No reason was given for summoning the council’s meeting at short notice.

Senior party leaders, who admitted that there was unease within the party on the push for Kharge as the head of the bloc, said that the decision to convene the national council on the same day as the national executive was unusual, and often the precursor to key political decisions.

“This is definitely a pointer of some important decisions in the offing. The decision to convene the national council meeting has surprised everybody,” a senior JD(U) leader said on condition of anonymity.