New Delhi, August 7
The polls to elect the president and the vice president may be over but the bitter aftertaste in the Opposition ranks is likely to linger with the schism between the Congress and the TMC widening and jibes at each other flowing thick and fast.
The defeat of the Opposition’s candidates in these polls were on expected lines, but what surprised many was that the bid for unity had in effect exposed the political fault lines in the Opposition ranks.
The two major Opposition forces trading barbs and the Trinamool Congress abstaining from the vice presidential poll do not augur well for the Opposition moving towards the 2024 parliamentary elections and are likely to dent their electoral prospects, analysts say.
While the Congress and the TMC were seen vying for credit in forging a consensus on a joint presidential candidate, their differences came out in the open during the vice presidential election.
Congress veteran Margaret Alva was fielded by the Opposition for the vice presidential poll against the ruling NDA’s Jagdeep Dhankhar, but the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress announced it would abstain from the election as there was no proper consultation before deciding on the candidate.
Alva’s first reaction was stern, saying this was not the time for ‘whataboutery’, ego or anger, but the time for courage, leadership and unity. However, she continued to express hope that Banerjee would come around and support her, but it was not to be.
And with a comprehensive defeat, the knives were out in public with Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh going public with his disappointment with the TMC.
