INDIA Bloc Unravelled? Congress Isolated As Other Allies Rally Around AAP For Delhi Polls

Last Updated:January 09, 2025, 16:47 IST

For the upcoming Delhi assembly elections, the Trinamool Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and Samajwadi Party have all pledged their support to the Aam Aadmi Party instead of the Congress

The INDIA bloc is likely to hold a meeting after the Delhi assembly elections to address the issue of who will be the face of the opposition front. (Image: PTI/File)

The unravelling is almost complete. The INDIA bloc is now a pale shadow of what it was when it came together ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections last year. The warm smiles have given way to the perpetual chill of a marriage gone sour. But, those who have been watching the banding together of these unlikely opposition parties are not as surprised.

The immediate catalyst was the Delhi assembly polls, with the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Shiv Sena (UBT), and Samajwadi Party (SP) pledging their support to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and not the Congress.

These parties have made it clear that their choice is the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP and they consider it the better partner. Sources in the TMC told CNN-News18: “How many seats did the AAP contest in West Bengal? Zero. But, the Congress and the Left together fought on six even when they should have stayed away. So, we know whom to trust."

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi made it clear that her party will support the AAP. “We feel that if anyone is giving a strong fight to the BJP, it is the AAP. So, we will support them in the Delhi polls," she said.

But, the reason behind this lies in Maharashtra, where Uddhav Thackeray is still upset with the Congress. He had fought hard to contest more seats within the Maha Vikas Aghadi during the state elections. Despite appealing to Rahul Gandhi and his party not to attack Hindutva ideologue VD Savarkar, as it hurt both the NCP (SP) as well as his own party, the Grand Old Party refused to listen to him.

But, the most ominous sign comes from the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), where Tejashwi Yadav has said the opposition front was only for the general elections. This is being seen as him sending a message to the Congress, ahead of the Bihar elections later this year, that it will not be the bigger player.

Mritunjay Tiwari of the RJD said: “The Congress should prepare to fight on all 243 seats in Bihar."

The INDIA bloc is likely to hold a meeting after the Delhi polls. The big issue that may be addressed in this meeting is who will be the face of the alliance. And it looks like no one wants the Congress to be the face.

This leaves the party isolated and the alliance dishevelled, while Rahul Gandhi’s position as leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha is unable to be the glue that binds them all together.

News elections INDIA Bloc Unravelled? Congress Isolated As Other Allies Rally Around AAP For Delhi Polls