Has the time come for opposition parties in India to unite?
It would seem so. At a discussion post the launch of the book, 'Fearless in Opposition — Power and Accountability' by Congress leader and former finance minister P.Chidambaram, panellist Nitish Kumar, the chief minister of Bihar, said India needed opposition unity. "We are used to fighting the Congress. The opposition parties are fearless, and we believe in debate and dissent. Now it is time to try for maximum unity among opposition parties. There is nothing to fear," he said. In the 2015 Bihar Assembly elections, Nitish Kumar had made up with long time political rival Lalu Prasad Yadav and went on to win the polls — humbling Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was the face of the BJP there.
The launch was attended by former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, MPs and former MPs from a number of political parties.
Sitaram Yechury, MP and general secretary of the CPI(M), another panelist, expressed the confidence that opposition unity will come. "Unity is always on the basis of an agenda. Chidambaram and I have drafted two common minimum programmes. I have the patent on extending outside support," he said . Asked whether the personality cult inherent in Indian politics could come in the way — a hint at the possibility of top position for the Gandhi scion — Yechury said it was not inherent in our culture.
Chidambaram highlighted the danger to democracy with the ruling party’s narrow definition of nationalism and patriotism, and pointed out that this divisiveness will tear the country apart. "To presume that this one dimensional narrative cannot be defeated is wrong. Nitish defeated the Hindutva narrative in Bihar. An upstart party with disruptive politics defeated it in Delhi. They (BJP) cannot presume they are invincible," the former minister and author of the evening said, reinforcing the need for unity.
It was Nitish Kumar who described how easy it was to defeat them. "What will these people teach us about nationalism or patriotism? How are they talking about the tiranga (national tricolor), when for years they had another flag? We don’t need a certificate of patriotism from anyone in this government."
