On Sunday evening (11th February), Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge declared that the party is getting ready to go solo across the country not just in Punjab if alliance partners don’t want to join their fight. His remarks come against the backdrop of I.N.D.I. alliance partner AAP announcing that it will contest all 13 Lok Sabha seats in Punjab. The announcement by AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal meant that the alliance partners would also be pitting candidates and do campaigning against each other in the state.
Notably, addressing a rally in Samrala of Ludhiana district, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge also asked party workers to be ready to contest the elections solo.
He said that the I.N.D.I. alliance is being prepared to defeat the Modi government. The alliance is fine somewhere but in other places, reconciliations are not happening. He told the Congress workers to understand that they have to fight, at some places have to fight alone and have to fight till the end and achieve victory. Koi Aye to theek, na aye to theek. Translation – It’s well and good if alliance partners contest with us, okay if they don’t want to join their fight.
'Will fight solo if there's no alliance': Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge
— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) February 11, 2024
Mallikarjun Kharge states that 'in some states, everything is not well in I.N.D.I.A bloc': @NiyamikaS & @kritsween analyze the latest political developments. pic.twitter.com/f545Q8iKPY
He asserted, “We have taken this decision in the entire country. It is not just about Punjab. You have to fight strongly.”
While giving the victory mantra to party workers, he stressed that if Congress workers want to win, they will have to come into the field. Will have to meet people. Their misconceptions have to be removed. He told Punjab Congress state president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring that the meeting could linger on. First, people need to be approached. Will have to talk to them. People have to be told what we did and what the Modi government did.
Congress MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla said, “Mallikarjun Kharge has also said today and our party has also said to make preparations on all 13 seats. Our state unit president and LoP have been saying from the beginning that we will contest all on (Lok Sabha seats of Punjab)..”
Nonetheless, leaders from both AAP and Congress have maintained that they are committed to the I.N.D.I.A. bloc despite recent developments.
I.N.D.I.A. bloc withering
The opposition parties formed the I.N.D.I.A. bloc to jointly take on the BJP-led NDA alliance for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in 2024. The erstwhile arch-nemesis first met in Patna on the call of Bihar CM Nitish Kumar.
However, going into the election, several alliance partners have left the opposition fold, further widening the rift in the bloc. While JD(U) joined the NDA camp, reports suggest that the RLD may follow its lead. Whereas, several parties have announced to go solo in their respective states of influence including TMC in Bengal and AAP in Punjab. The seat-sharing has led to ugly spats among the rest of the alliance partners and now the Congress President’s assertion to go solo could further escalate tensions within the alliance.
