Congress Faces Opposition Within INDIA Bloc Over Candidate Announcement and Attacks on Pinarayi Vijayan

Days after the DMK announced that it will skip a Congress-convened meeting of the INDIA bloc scheduled for June 8, fresh rifts have surfaced in the Opposition alliance, with the CPI(M) and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) conveying their displeasure to the Congress leadership over its style of functioning. While the JMM is upset with the Congress for “unilaterally” announcing a candidate for one of the two Rajya Sabha seats bound for elections from Jharkhand, the CPI(M) has conveyed its strong displeasure over attacks on former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan by Congress leaders, including Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, during their campaigns in the recently concluded Assembly elections. CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby has written a strongly-worded letter to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to flag the issue. And in an unusual move, the CPI(M) has forwarded the letter to all the constituents of the bloc. “We have seen the letter. Although it is between the Congress and the CPI(M), we can only urge the Congress as the leader of the INDIA bloc to take everyone along to ensure cohesion and unity,” a senior Opposition leader said. In his letter to Kharge, Baby said, “There was a systematic campaign by the Congress leadership during the Kerala Assembly elections, that the CPI(M) and the BJP have struck a deal. Further, it was alleged that the CPI(M)’s senior leader, Member of the Polit Bureau and then Chief Minister, Comrade Pinarayi Vijayan, had also struck a deal with Modi. The question was posed ‘Otherwise, why is it that he has not been interrogated or arrested by the Enforcement Directorate’?” “These were not stray remarks made in the heat of an election campaign, but were the centerpiece of your political campaign. Every national leader, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, and yourself, made such allegations repeatedly,” the CPI(M) chief wrote. Arguing that the CPI(M) has worked sincerely for the success of the Opposition alliance since its inception in June 2023 as a broad platform to fight the BJP, Baby said: “Strangely, now, the CPI(M) is accused of having a deal with the BJP. This is a canard which we cannot take lightly. This strikes at the very basis of the unity forged against the BJP.” “You should know that hundreds of our cadres were martyred in Kerala in the fight against the RSS-BJP. We would also like to bring to your notice that during the last ten years of LDF rule in Kerala, there were no communal riots of any sort, unlike in many other states, which vouches for our commitment towards secularism and safeguarding communal harmony,” he told the Congress president. Baby also stated that Rahul Gandhi has repeatedly called for the ED’s action against Vijayan. “Can this be termed as an anti-BJP stance or is it a case of inviting the Modi government to take illegal punitive action against a fellow Opposition leader? Unless these matters are clarified, the very purpose of the INDIA bloc would be in question. As the President of the Indian National Congress, it is up to you and the Congress leadership to clear the air regarding such disruptive moves,” he said. Baby said the CPI(M) felt the need to raise the issue in the context of the June 8 meeting, adding that “However, the CPI(M) will fully cooperate in Parliament with the INDIA bloc and other Opposition parties to put up a united fight against the authoritarian, communal, and anti-people policies of the Modi government. The CPI(M) will never be found wanting in this task despite all the attacks and distortions.” The JMM is equally upset with the Congress for announcing its candidate – AICC in charge of Kharge’s office Pranav Jha – for one of the two Rajya Sabha seats in the upcoming elections from Jharkhand. The ruling JMM, led by Chief Minister Hemant Soren , wanted to field its candidates in both the seats from the state. The JMM-Congress alliance has the numbers to win both the seats. After a meeting of the JMM leadership Friday, its multiple leaders were quoted as saying that the party could field candidates in both the seats. The JMM Saturday nominated former minister Baidyanath Ram as its candidate for one seat. On the second seat, JMM general secretary and spokesperson Supriyo Bhattacharya reportedly said that the final decision will be taken on it by the party leadership following a discussion with the Congress. To ensure victory in the Upper House polls, a candidate in Jharkhand is required to secure a minimum of 28 first-preference votes. The BJP is also likely to field a candidate although it is four short of the requisite number to win a seat. The JMM-led coalition has 56 MLAs in the 81-member Assembly as against the BJP-led NDA’s 24 MLAs. In a jolt to the INDIA bloc earlier this week, the DMK announced its decision to skip its June 8 meeting. The DMK’s move reflected its anger over the Congress’s decision to snap ties with it in Tamil Nadu and join hands with Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) to form their government after the recent Assembly polls. The DMK’s decision signalled that it was unwilling to share space with the Congress, raising fresh questions over the future of the Opposition alliance.