Things aren’t looking too good in other states as well | India News – Times of India

Deep discord fuelled by competing ambitions and differing strategies became more apparent within INDIA bloc following JD(U)’s exit from the alliance. Despite sharing a common goal of countering BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, internal conflicts have undermined the bloc formed in July 2023.

While reaffirming TMC’s commitment to INDIA bloc’s goal of ousting BJP from office, she expressed frustration over the lack of progress in talks.She had offered Congress Berhampore and Malda South seats, which it won in 2019, and indicated that she would have considered a third seat if Congress had reciprocated in Meghalaya or Assam. TMC said it waited 210 days since the first INDIA bloc meeting on June 23 last year before ending talks.
The fissures became widely visible as the Bengal leg of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra faced administrative roadblocks.

In Assam, INDIA bloc comprises 15 parties. However, communication within the alliance has stalled following the Bengal CM’s rift with Congress. TMC leaders skipped Rahul’s joint meeting with allies when his yatra passed through Assam.
In Punjab, CM Bhagwant Mann declared on Jan 24 that AAP would go solo in the state, contesting all 13 LS seats. The state’s Congress unit had been opposing an alliance. AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal said his party would contest all 90 assembly seats in Haryana on its own and would have an alliance with INDIA bloc only for the state’s 10 LS seats.
INDIA bloc finds limited traction in Kerala, primarily due to the entrenched rivalry between Congress-led UDF and CPM-led LDF, the dominant political coalitions in the state. With BJP not posing an immediate electoral threat to either coalition, the bloc’s impact remains minimal.
In UP, voices are growing louder within Samajwadi Party against the perceived “leisurely” approach of Congress in finalising seat-sharing talks. Congress reportedly discussed fielding candidates for 30 LS seats and is yet to respond to Akhilesh Yadav’s announcement of allocating 11 seats to it initially. RLD, which received seven seats from SP, is said to be demanding more from its alliance partner.
In Maharashtra, Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress, and NCP’s Sharad Pawar group attended last week the first MVA meeting on seat-sharing. But it was inconclusive.
(With inputs from Kolkata, Chandigarh, Thiruvananthapuram, Guwahati, Mumbai, Lucknow)