Lok Sabha Elections / Will Sibal prove to be the trump card for Congress in 'INDIA' alliance?

Lok Sabha Election: The third meeting of the opposition alliance 'INDIA' was held in Mumbai, which was hosted by Uddhav Thackeray-led Mahavikas Aghadi (NCP-Congress-Shiv Sena UBT). Rajya Sabha member Kapil Sibal also participated in this meeting. Sibal's presence may have made many leaders uncomfortable, but he can prove to be a trump card for the Congress in the opposition alliance INDIA. Kapil Sibal has good relations with the leaders of all the constituent parties of the INDIA alliance, through which Kapil Sibal can become an important link in making Congress universally acceptable among the alliance partners and in the seat sharing formula.

Opposition parties have already started creating Chakravyu to stop PM Modi and BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. A two-day meeting of the opposition alliance INDIA was held in Mumbai on 31st August-1st September, in which all the leaders of the INDIA alliance became restless with the sudden entry of Kapil Sibal. Sibal was invited to attend the ‘INDIA’ meeting by former Jammu and Kashmir CM Farooq Abdullah, only after which he attended the meeting.

Sibal was seen standing in the first row

However, no one expected Sibal to attend the meeting. That is why when Sibal entered the meeting while talking to Sanjay Raut, everyone was surprised. The reason for this was that Sibal is a former Congress leader and last year he had left the party criticizing Rahul Gandhi and became a Rajya Sabha member with the support of SP. This was the reason that when he reached Mumbai to attend the meeting, he came at the center of political discussion. Not only this, he was seen standing in the first row in the photo session of the opposition leaders.

Frozen ice on relationships started melting with time

Kapil Sibal is a seasoned politician and a lawyer by profession. He may have been an attacker on Rahul Gandhi before leaving Congress, but when he said goodbye to the party, he did not lose his words. Sibal had said that there is no sourness in the relations between Congress and me. I still have good relations with him. Was associated with Congress for 30 years, but now felt that the time has come to leave the party. At the same time, while living in the G-23 faction formed in the Congress, Kapil Sibal had openly said that the Gandhi family should give up the leadership of the Congress, but when he left the party, he did not say anything on the Gandhi family and the Congress. With time, the frozen ice on relationships has also started melting.

Sibal brainstorms on opposition strategy

Kapil Sibal may not be with Congress, but did not join any other party. He may reach the Rajya Sabha with the support of the SP, but as an independent member. In this way, Sibal kept a door open for himself in politics and now wants to enter through the same route. He has also indicated this by attending the meeting in Mumbai, where Sonia Gandhi to Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge were present. Sibal brainstormed on the opposition strategy at the INDIA meeting in Mumbai, where the seat sharing formula was also discussed.

It was decided to form a committee for the distribution of seats at the state level.

From Mamta Banerjee to Arvind Kejriwal, they want that the seat distribution should be decided by 30th September. More or less the same opinion is also of SP President Akhilesh Yadav. Nitish Kumar also insisted on solving the seat sharing formula as soon as possible, but the intention of the Congress is after the assembly elections. In this way, Chhatrap wants that due to seat sharing now, some seats will also be available in states like Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. Instead of giving up Lok Sabha seats in Punjab and Delhi, Kejriwal wants some seats for his party in MP and Rajasthan, while SP is expecting seats in MP instead of UP. It has been decided to form a committee for the distribution of seats at the state level.

Sibal's strong ties with opposition parties

At the same time, now is not the time of the Congress, when it used to speak in the whole country. Congress has been wiped out in states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and West Bengal, while in some places the mass base is limited. Even in Gujarat, Delhi, Haryana, Goa and Maharashtra, the Congress is no longer as strong as before. Regional parties are strong in the states. Keeping in mind the ground reality of the Congress, the regional parties are trying to put pressure on the Congress. Kapil Sibal can find an acceptable formula and way of seat sharing between Congress and Chhatrap in the INDIA alliance, because he has strong relations with all the opposition parties.

Sibal supported all opposition parties

Actually, Kapil Sibal does not only do politics but is also a well-known lawyer of the country. Most of the Congress and opposition leaders have taken help from Sibal in legal battles at one time or the other. That's why he has very close personal relations with all the leaders. In most of the cases of RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, Kapil Sibal appeared as a lawyer and with the help of RJD he even went to Rajya Sabha once from Bihar. Similarly, his relationship with SP chief Akhilesh Yadav is also good, Shivpal-Akhilesh had a fight over SP's claim, then Sibal got a decision in favor of Akhilesh Yadav after fighting a legal battle. Sibal is also fighting the legal battle of Uddhav Thackeray's party Shiv Sena.

Kapil Sibal's relationship with Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren is also good. Sibal also looks after the affairs of TMC President and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. NCP President Sharad Pawar, BJD leader Pinaki Mishra, Akali leader Naresh Gujral have very close personal relations with Kapil Sibal. In such a situation, Congress can use Kapil Sibal as a trump card to coordinate with the Chhatrapas. Kapil Sibal had a very important role in ending that movement as a senior UPA minister during the Anna movement.

Sibal can prove to be important in bridging the distance

All the talks of the first phase of the Anna movement used to take place at Kapil Sibal's house only. In this context, Sibal can prove to be important in coordinating and bridging the distance with the Aam Aadmi Party as well. Biju Janata Dal and Akali Dal are still keeping distance from the opposition alliance INDIA. In such a situation, if Kapil Sibal is given the responsibility of bringing him along, then he can fulfill that too very well. Kapil Sibal has been continuously saying that there should be continuous dialogue with the parties and their leaders fighting for the same ideas and issues. Mutual agreement and understanding will be formed only through this kind of dialogue, we will come closer to each other even at the ideological level and relationships will be formed at the personal level as well. Only after this, an effective strategy will be made regarding the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Sibal can act as a bridge between Congress and regional parties

Sibal had also said in an interview given to a private channel that in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, only a quick alliance or coordination of seats is not going to work against the BJP government. For this, it is necessary to sit together and talk about the differences between all the parties, the points and issues of conflict. Only then such a way will be found which is acceptable to all and everyone's political interests will also be protected. One thing is clear from Sibal's words that he wants to strengthen the alliance against BJP in 2024. Now that Sibal has joined the opposition camp, it remains to be seen how Congress will use him, but one thing is clear that he can act as a bridge between Congress and regional parties.