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Journalism of Courage
FOR THE past three working days, the Opposition – united and aggressive – has been stalling Parliament trying to corner the BJP government over the allegations against the Adani Group. But despite the show of unity (meetings and joint media interactions etc), deep down there is considerable mistrust among the parties for each other – not a good sign for the Opposition a year before the general elections.
If anti-Congressism was the binding force for most of the parties in the 1970, ’80s and ’90s, the fierce animosity towards the ruling BJP is forcing most of the parties including the Congress to rally together now. But the trust deficit is not making the bonds among them any stronger and is prompting every party to view the other with an element of suspicion.
The Opposition strategy vis-a-vis the standoff in Parliament is a prime example of this scepticism. A day after the Budget was presented last week, to be precise Thursday, the Opposition parties met and decided unanimously to raise the Adani affair in Parliament for two days. Senior Opposition leaders agreed that the revelations against the Group were serious and damning enough to put the Government on the mat. They agreed to call for an impartial probe unitedly, but disagreed on the nature of the investigation. The Congress felt they should demand a JPC probe. The Trinamool Congress and Left disagreed and argued that a Supreme Court-monitored probe should be demanded.
The parties agreed to disagree and demanded both.
It was also decided that the parties would raise the issue in Parliament for two days vociferously – in other words disrupt and stall the proceedings – then stage a protest at the Gandhi Statue on Monday and participate in the discussion on the President’s Address, which would give all of them an opportunity to raise the Adani issue, and other matters of concern.
But the mistrust was so much that many of the leaders in private felt the ruling side could play some “dirty trick” and may use some of the parties in the Opposition to scuttle the discussion. In fact, senior Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien went public on Sunday when he tweeted “BJP scared. Trying to run away from debate in Parliament. Great chance to skewer the Modi Government from Monday, February 6 when both Houses debate the President’s Address. Keep a close watch. If any Opposition party disrupts, they are in cahoots with BJP. We the Trinamool Congress want debate not disruption.”
But on Monday, the divisions lay clear. Congress leaders say they wanted the blockade to end and to participate in the discussion in the afternoon. P Chidambaram, they say, was supposed to speak on behalf of the Congress. However, the disruptions continued, and Congress leaders blamed the Aam Aadmi Party and K Chandrashekar Rao’s Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS). One senior Congress leader said the RJD and Samajwadi Party were not keen on allowing Parliament to function either.
“We wanted to ensure that the Opposition remained united,” a senior Congress leader asserted.
However, the other parties said that it was the Congress itself that was divided. “One section in the Congress feels the Opposition should allow the debate to take place and another which favours disruptions. This section wanted a shoulder and they found two (AAP and BRS),” a non-Congress leader said. Another leader said the Congress deliberately did not take a firm stand as it wanted the street protests it is holding across the country to reflect in Parliament too.
“They did not try hard to convince the AAP and the BRS because they were holding some sort of protest today…,” he said.
Some of the parties were not amused. “We must use disruption tactically,” an MP said. “The debate on the President’s Address is a good opportunity. It is a 12-hour debate. The BJP and parties friendly to it will speak for three hours maximum. We have nine hours to put across our points. It is not a Bill. We can speak on all issues.”
O’Brien argued that the Opposition was on the same page when it came to strategy. “When it comes to tactics, there may be some options. But once the strategy is in place, tactics can be worked out,” he said.
To be fair, there is nothing wrong with individual parties having own opinions and views on issues, strategy and tactics. The Opposition may even decide by Tuesday to allow the discussion, and hammer the BJP and government in one voice. But the fact remains that beneath the veneer of unity, there is lack of trust and an element on oneupmanship.
Unlike during the UPA II government, when the then main opposition party BJP could stall Parliament on its own, the Opposition is numerically very weak now and, hence, needs each other. “It is like that old Ajit joke… Drown a man in liquid oxygen, the liquid won’t let him live, and the oxygen won’t allow him to die… The anti-BJPism propels us to be together… but ambitions (of parties) and politics come in the way often,” a senior Opposition leader said.
