One or many INDIA convenors? Nitish camp reads message in Lalu remark

A senior JD(U) leader said: “Multiple convenors do not make much sense, though having statewise convenors is a good idea. There used to be state convenors in the NDA as well. But multiple convenors is not a good idea. We don’t know how Lalu Prasad is unilaterally talking about such a core part of the INDIA agenda.”

The leader added that Lalu, who recently met Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, “…could have got some idea of what could unfold in the forthcoming INDIA meeting. It looks like the Congress, the leading party in the alliance, is not open to the idea of a national convenor, and may well have got the backing of some parties.”

Lalu, who is out on bail in the fodder scam case, was visiting his paternal village of Phulwaria in Gopalganj on Tuesday, when he told reporters: “There is no dispute over the convenor’s role. Anyone can become the [INDIA] convenor… Suppose X is made the convenor. There could be [other] convenors who could be given four states each.” He added that there could also be state-wise convenors for better coordination.

It is known that during his recent Delhi visit, Nitish Kumar had tried to meet some Opposition leaders. But the meetings did not materialise.

His visit to the memorial of former PM Atal Behari Vajpayee of the BJP meanwhile did not go down well with some Opposition leaders. Given Nitish’s old links with the BJP, many saw it as a “pressure tactic” by the JD(U) leader ahead of the INDIA meeting.

A Mahagathbandhan (MGB) source said: “Nitish Kumar should have taken out his own yatra before Rahul Gandhi launched his Bharat Jodo Yatra. Having taken the lead in this respect, the Congress might not agree to giving primacy to a leader of any other party. Besides, Nitish’s twin-track politics of keeping the BJP guessing while warming up to the Opposition can work in Bihar, but not nationally.”

The Opposition unity bid began with a meeting at Patna on June 23, with the Bihar CM playing the lead role. The second meet took place in Bangalore on July 17, with 26 parties taking part in it. By then, the Congress — fresh from its recent victory in Karnataka — had assumed the leadership role in the alliance. Nitish Kumar, who returned from Bangalore without talking to the media, later played down his silence, reminding everyone that he was the one who had initiated the Opposition unity move.

On the agenda at the two-day INDIA meet in Mumbai is likely to be plans, policies and joint rallies, besides selection of top office-bearers. Among contenders for the positions of top office bearers of the INDIA alliance are AICC chief Mallikajun Kharge, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, TN CM M K Stalin, NCP chief Sharad Pawar and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal.