Rashtra Manch Meeting: Just Alternative Vision, No Opposition Unity Yet
By A Special Correspondent
First publised on 2021-06-23 07:49:19
About the Author
The Rashtra Manch and the Yashwant Sinha-Sharad Pawar combine had disclosed that they were holding a meeting of opposition leaders and eminent persons with a lot of fanfare. This had led observers to believe that it was a step towards bringing the opposition under a common front to take on the BJP in 2024. But things did not pan out that way. In the end, it was just a meeting to look for an alternative vision for the development of the country.
That is a noble exercise and must be undertaken. Democracy thrives on debate, discussion and presentation of alternate visions. The Rashtra Manch is presumably doing that ever since it was established. Till date, the media was not informed about the meetings that took place, who attended those meetings and what was discussed.
The very fact that the current meeting was highlighted meant that both Sinha and Pawar had something in mind. That is also the reason that despite not having any truck with the Manch in the past, Pawar agreed to host the meeting. But when the 5 Congress leaders, including Kapil Sibal, who were invited but chose not to attend, they decided to downplay the event. That is why Pawar and Sinha did not face the media and left it to their lieutenants to field the questions.
It is clear that the meeting was a testing ground for future. Despite Prashant Kishor saying that no front will be effective in countering the BJP, the fact is that the opposition knows that the chances of beating the BJP rise manifold in one-to-one contests where opposition votes are not divided. Hence, they will try their utmost to arrive at a state-wise alliance of parties to counter the BJP. There are many contradictions and any alliance will have to overcome them. But these are early days. There will be several such meetings in the future and the top leaders will also get involved at a later stage. A united opposition can fight the BJP better. What form this unity will take is for them to decide.
