Bengaluru: Never-before-seen scenes at Oppn meet as unlikely allies join hands

The quote about politics making strange bedfellows is attributed to 19th century American essayist Charles Dudley Warner, but is believed to have its origins in Shakespeare’s Tempest (with politics being replaced by misery). On Tuesday, in Bengaluru, all aspects of the quote played out when 26 parties, some sworn rivals, came together to declare themselves the INDIA alliance.

The day saw several moments that would have been considered impossible just days ago. Some of these were captured on camera; others, happened off it. For instance, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee reserved her warmest reference for former Congress president Rahul Gandhi during her address, terming him “our favourite” . Banerjee has always shared a special relationship with UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi but she never really seemed to warm up to Rahul Gandhi, and as recently as March, was quoted by a colleague as saying, “They want to make Rahul Gandhi a hero of the Opposition camp.”

As some of the leaders present explained, perhaps this was because everyone at the meeting saw the value of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra. “I think everyone was positive and appreciative of RG. Nothing unexpected, really,’’ said Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary.

But it wasn’t just about Gandhi and Banerjee. One of the attendees said on condition of anonymity that Banerjee shared her lunch table with CPM’s Sitaram Yechury. This was all the more surprising since the Trinamool Congress, the CPM, and the Congress have just fought a bruising and bitter battle in the local body election in West Bengal.

​”Yes, the whole thing is extraordinary,’’ admitted CPI(ML)’s Dipankar Bhattacharya, “but the crisis of democracy has evoked this extraordinary response. Many people may not have thought of this , and the situation does vary in states, but, this is an overarching national campaign which will have to address state level differences . Some we will sort out but some may remain.’’

That was a recurring theme across comments by various leaders -- there would be differences, but there was also a larger objective.

Sitting at a table next to Banerjee was the delegation from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), with two chief ministers Arvind Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann flanked by MPs Raghav Chadha and Sanjay Singh. They seemed visibly more relaxed than they were at the Patna meeting on June 23where they were unsure about the Congress’s support in the Upper House to oppose the Delhi ordinance. Now with an assurance of support, they were happy being photographed with all the Congressmen. In fact, Chadha was welcomed with a hug from KC Venugopal (they were apparently working behind the scenes to iron out differences) , while others asked about his impending wedding with actor Parineeti Chopra.

Indeed, the bonhomie may have shocked the Delhi unit of the Congress, especially when the party’s social media handle started tweeting Kejriwal’s soundbite. “Let’s rewind back to the ’70s when Mrs Gandhi was at the peak of her popularity, but in 1977, a political formation was created where even those opposed to each other like the Jan Sangh and Communists came together to defeat the mighty Mrs Gandhi.Today, the people are demanding that a powerful BJP and Modi need to be removed and they need a departure from the current regime to save India. Therefore, even if we have differences in states, people are willing to come together for a larger cause,’’ said Chadha.

Topping everything, though, was Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s assurance about his party’s intentions. For years, the grand old party has been talking about the suitability of Rahul Gandhi for the Prime Minister’s position, but on Tuesday, Kharge brushed aside the idea. Instead he said: “Our intention is not to assume power for ourselves. It is to protect our Constitution, democracy, secularism, and social justice.”

But the opposition’s idea of INDIA is currently just that, an idea. Much will depend on its translation into election strategies and seat-sharing arrangements as the BJP and its own idea of a “new India”, potentially face off against a newer INDIA.