Even as the alliance between Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has started to appear as a force to reckon with, experts suggest it would be a dent to the anti-BJP consolidation if Congress does not ally with the combine, in some way or the other.
Speaking to BloombergQuint in a panel discussion, Lucknow-based senior journalist Sharad Pradhan said the Congress cannot be whisked away by the alliance. “Congress is on a resurgence after the recent state elections and is not in a bad position as in 2014. In fact, in the last election, even SP and BSP were nowhere,” he said.
“Neither of SP and BSP have 38 potential winners and it is the same with Congress if they decide to go alone. So, these parties will have to come to some sort of tacit understanding,” he added.
Sandeep Shastri, National Co-ordinator, Lokniti Network also agreed. “The BJP will gain some advantage if the Congress does not come along with SP and BSP because it may eat into the anti-BJP votes,” he said.
Political commentator Neerja Chowdhury had a slightly different take. While she agreed that the Congress’ inclusion in the alliance would have given it a ‘national look and impact,’ she opined that the grand old party going alone may well dent the BJP. “With Yogi Adityanath’s elevation, there is a manifestation of Thakurvaad in UP, due to which Brahmins, who were BJP’s voters are looking for greener pastures. The Congress may eat into this upper caste vote base,” she said.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)