New Delhi | The meeting of INDIA bloc held on Monday after nearly two years focused on setting aside mutual bitterness, aligning with civil society movements, and acknowledging the Congress as the opposition alliance's anchor provided the party shows a "large heart".
Sources said the most emphatic assertion for avoiding criticism of each other came from Trinamool Congress supremo and former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee - a marked departure from her previous efforts to carve out a space for herself independent of the Congress.
Even after the 2024 Lok Sabha poll results, Banerjee had, at various points, questioned the Congress's ability to lead the opposition alliance. The TMC earlier never missed any opportunity to underline its status as a non-electoral ally of the Congress, unlike the DMK.
Ever since suffering a poll drubbing in West Bengal, the TMC chief, grappling with a virtual split in the party, has adopted a reconciliatory tone and become the biggest proponent of the need for an active opposition alliance.
At Monday's meeting, she said the INDIA allies should "try not to criticise each other", a leader who attended the meeting quoted her as saying.
Sources said that before the meeting formally began, Banerjee had a nearly 10-minute-long conversation with Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi.
A picture of the two leaders embracing each other was also posted by the Congress on its social media platforms.
In his intervention, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi also argued that mutual trust and solidarity among opposition parties would be essential if they were to successfully challenge the ruling establishment.
"It is clear that the Congress and INDIA are on one side and on the other side is the BJP-RSS," an opposition leader quoted Rahul Gandhi as having said in the meeting.
Banerjee also called for greater engagement with civil society movements and indicated her willingness to contribute to strengthening the alliance's organisational structure if required.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah is learnt to have endorsed the youth-led political movement Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) more directly.
"Let's associate with them, they must be doing something right," Abdullah said, according to sources.
Abdullah also categorically asserted that the constituents of the bloc need to acknowledge that the Congress is the "glue" that holds the alliance together.
He underlined that the opposition had already achieved something significant by preventing the BJP from getting majority on its own in the 2024 general elections and urged them to build on that achievement rather than dwell on recent setbacks.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, seated next to Rahul Gandhi, also stressed on the need to reduce friction within the alliance.
More importantly, Yadav had a message for the Congress ahead of the seat-sharing talks for the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls next year. He said the principal opposition party should "show a large heart" and back the strongest anti-BJP force in individual states, it is learnt.
Yadav was among the leaders who criticised the manner in which the Congress broke its ties with the DMK which stayed away from the meeting.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav was also sharply critical of the Congress's Bihar unit leadership, sources added.
Akhilesh Yadav, sources said, echoed the CPIM's John Brittas in flaying the Congress', particularly Rahul Gandhi's, "personal attacks" on former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan during the recently held assembly polls.
Nevertheless, what stood out, according to leaders involved in holding the meeting, was the absence of any tussle over leadership, something that defined previous huddles of the alliance that was formed in June 2023 in Patna with JDU chief and then Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar playing the host.
Kumar had walked out of the INDIA bloc ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, dealing a major blow to the unity project of the opposition to effectively take on the BJP. It was Banerjee and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal who torpedoed Kumar's bid to lead the alliance as its convenor, JDU leader Sanjay Jha claimed recently.
In Monday's meeting, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge opened the discussion by outlining the current political situation and stressing the need for opposition parties to work together.
He also raised concerns over alleged electoral irregularities and voter disenfranchisement, themes that would recur through the meeting.
Referring to West Bengal, Akhilesh Yadav argued that those who believed Mamata Banerjee had simply been defeated were mistaken, suggesting that institutional factors had played a role.
"Mamata Banerjee said she was 90 per cent sure that she was robbed of the mandate. Akhilesh Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav said they were 40 per cent convinced. Rahul Gandhi said he was 100 per cent sure that the recent elections were stolen," an MP who attended the nearly three-hour-long meeting said.
Tejashwi Yadav argued that the opposition needed to look beyond immediate electoral contests and begin preparing systematically for the 2029 Lok Sabha elections. The alliance, he said, should remain active on the ground and build sustained campaigns against the BJP.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, who joined the meeting virtually like Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, proposed more frequent meetings among alliance partners and argued that the key lesson from recent elections was the need for much tighter coordination.
NCP(SP) leader Supriya Sule pointed to Maharashtra as an example of opposition cooperation working effectively among the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and Sharad Pawar's party, arguing that the experience offered lessons for the broader alliance.
CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya argued that the INDIA bloc had so far functioned primarily as an idea and now needed to evolve into a recognisable political identity.
New Delhi | The Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) found mention at the INDIA bloc meeting on Monday, with leaders expressing divergent views on its significance and intent, sources said.
According to sources at the meeting, the issue was not part of the formal agenda but was referred to by several leaders in their presentations.
One opposition leader said there were concerns among some participants about the nature of the movement that has a massive presence online and whether there could be political motives behind it.
"There were some concerns about the real intent," an opposition leader said, adding that the dominant sentiment in the meeting was that the development reflected genuine dissatisfaction among young people.
"Generally, the view was that it should be seen as a healthy sign of dissent and disapproval of youngsters against the system," the leader said.
As per sources, National Conference leader Omar Abdullah remarked that the Cockroach Janata Party is "doing something right", and suggested that the opposition parties should engage with them.
TMC chief Mamata Banerjee was quoted by a source as saying that while parties continue to fight political battles, there is also a need to encourage civil movements.
Another opposition leader said the subject came up repeatedly despite never being a part of the agenda.
"The so-called Cockroach Party found a place in the discussion. Different leaders referred to it while delivering their presentations. There were different opinions," the leader said.
According to the source, CPI (ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya appeared to be more hopeful about the phenomenon, while several others expressed reservations.
The source said some leaders felt emerging platforms like the CJP were increasingly attracting attention in spaces traditionally occupied by opposition parties.
Another leader said the movement "got its fair share" of attention during the deliberations.
"Some doubted the scale of participation, its future and its reach. But the majority felt it reflected something and that political parties should look at that," the leader said.
According to another source, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray also referred to the movement, saying such support for it indicated that there was a space for dissent in society.
While opinions differed on the origins and trajectory of the movement, sources said leaders across parties broadly agreed that the issues being raised by students and young people deserved attention.
At a joint press conference after the meeting, INDIA bloc leaders announced a five-point programme on education-related issues, including a demand for the resignation of the Union education minister.
The Cockroach Janata Party, or CJP, emerged in recent weeks as a youth-led movement protesting against alleged irregularities in competitive exams and demanding broader reforms in the education system.
The group has drawn attention through social media campaigns and public demonstrations, including a recent protest at Delhi's Jantar Mantar that attracted significant participation.
New Delhi | The CPI(M) on Monday raised the issue of remarks made by top Congress leaders during the Kerala Assembly election campaign, including allegations of a tacit Left-BJP understanding, at the INDIA bloc meeting on Monday, sources familiar with the discussions said.
The issue had figured prominently ahead of the meeting after CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby wrote to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, objecting to the allegations and describing them as inconsistent with the spirit of cooperation within the opposition alliance.
Baby did not attend Monday's meeting, with the party nominating its Rajya Sabha leader John Brittas to participate in the discussions.
According to sources, at the meeting, Brittas said that as the largest constituent of the INDIA bloc, the Congress should take a broader view of national interests and avoid allowing state-level political considerations to undermine opposition unity.
Referring to the allegations made during the Kerala campaign, Brittas maintained that while the CPI(M) could politically contest charges made by Congress leaders, it was different when such remarks came from Rahul Gandhi, one of the principal faces of the opposition alliance.
He argued that the alliance came together to fight the BJP and questioned the purpose of partners sitting together if one constituent publicly accused another of helping the ruling party.
Brittas also recalled the Left's support for the Congress-led UPA government after the 2004 Lok Sabha elections to keep the BJP out of power and said the CPI(M) did not require any certificate from the Congress regarding its opposition to the BJP.
He also said the Left party had supported Rahul Gandhi in the National Herald case, adding that investigative agencies could not be viewed differently across states and political contexts.
According to another leader who attended the meeting, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav were among those who spoke on the subject, with Yadav urging the Congress to be more "large-hearted" in its approach towards allies. Concerns were also raised over the developments that led to the DMK staying away from the meeting.
Despite the frank exchange, leaders indicated that the overall mood of the meeting was forward-looking and focused on strengthening opposition unity.
In his concluding remarks, Gandhi acknowledged the concerns raised by allies and said the Congress would work to keep the alliance together.
"As the biggest party here, we will have all the love and affection to unite this team," Gandhi said, according to people present at the meeting.
The meeting, attended by leaders of 23 opposition parties, was convened to discuss the INDIA bloc's future strategy following recent political developments, including assembly election setbacks suffered by some of its constituents.
DMK, which has accused the Congress of "betrayal" in Tamil Nadu, did not attend the meeting. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which had already announced that it was no longer part of the INDIA bloc, was also missing.
