Is NCP Chief working on a non-Congress Opposition Front with Mamata and Others?

The shrewd old-style Sharad Pawar keeps all sides guessing. Just a day after he held a dinner meeting for the MLAs from Maharashtra including some Congress ones, a few of whom are upset with their party, and with union minister Nitin Gadkari emerging as a surprise guest, Pawar had a thirty-minute meeting with PM Narendra Modi in Parliament.

At a press conference, Shard Pawar made two important points in which one is the issue of Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut’s property being attached by the ED and another one is he does not want to be UPA’s (United Progressive Alliance) chairperson in place of Sonia Gandhi.

Pawar mentioned that he had received a letter from TMC (Trinamool Congress) chief Mamata Benerjee, asking him to speak to the like-minded opposition leaders to form a front against BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) for 2024 elections.

According to some sources, there is a plan cooking with Mamata, Pawar, and Arvind Kejriwal taking the lead. Most agree that the Congress party with its poor organization and electoral results can no longer lead any front. Also, the party has AAP and TMC as its opponents and therefore may not be open to doing business with them and it would be difficult for Congress to reach out to them, especially AAP. Because, AAP is taking the Congress space in many states like Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, and Haryana.

Previous attempts to make a front to take on the BJP have met a bit of success. With many ambitions and egos, it may be tough for Pawar also to get everyone together. Electoral success matters in the end.