Choppy Road Ahead For Congress In INDIA Bloc As Allies Push Party On The Backfoot

Last Updated:December 26, 2024, 17:47 IST

What’s worse for the Congress is the fact that a few others like the Trinamool Congress (TMC) could end up agreeing with the AAP.

While the Congress has tried to defend the break as state level politics, the fact is that with TMC backed by many other parties pushing for West Bengal Chief Miniter Mamata Bannerjee as the leader of INDIA bloc, the acrimony has had an impact on the future of the bloc. (AFP)

The start to the Congress Working Committee (CWC) couldn’t have been worse. While all the top Congress leaders have assembled in Belagavi to chalk out the roadmap for 2025, the day hasn’t turned well for the party. The road ahead seems choppy for the Congress with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) insisting that the grand old party should be thrown out of the INDIA bloc.

What’s worse for the Congress is the fact that a few others like the Trinamool Congress (TMC) could end up agreeing with it. The TMC has made no bones about the fact that it cannot do business with the grand old party any more. Inside Parliament, the TMC stayed away from all INDIA bloc protests as it felt it was being dictated by the Congress and was being run only on Rahul Gandhi’s agenda. That’s why, even when Rahul Gandhi faced FIRs, the TMC refused to murmur a word in his support.

While the Congress has tried to defend the break as state level politics, the fact is that with TMC backed by many other parties pushing for West Bengal Chief Miniter Mamata Bannerjee as the leader of INDIA bloc, the acrimony has had an impact on the future of the bloc.

Add to this is the AAP versus Congress fight. The charges hurled by both the parties against each other are grave. The Congress’s political compulsion is that it cannot overcome the fact that it’s a pan-India party. It needs to assert itself, and cannot be seen to be on a backfoot or buckling under pressure from its INDIA bloc partners.

The CWC’s agenda is also to project itself as the sole national alternative to the BJP. But given the nature of politics in the country, political survival minus coalition seems impractical. The narrative is gaining traction that the Congress is a liability and the roadblock to an effective fight against the BJP and Narendra Modi. The AAP-Congress fight is unlikely to remain restricted to only Punjab and Delhi. It will, like in the case of the TMC, have a national impact on the future of the Congress in the INDIA bloc. What remains to be seen now is whether 2025 could be the year of withering away of the Congress and INDIA bloc.

News politics Choppy Road Ahead For Congress In INDIA Bloc As Allies Push Party On The Backfoot