Large swathes of India’s political landscape can indeed trace their roots to the Congress.
The 2014 general election marked a decisive shift. The BJP became the central pole of Indian politics and the Congress was reduced to its lowest ever number in the Lok Sabha. However, the erosion of what political scientist Rajni Kothari called the “Congress System” has a much longer history, marked by ebbs and flows. Broadly, after the Nehruvian consensus began fading in the 1960s, a gradual deepening of federalism and assertion by marginalised sections of society led to social groups leaving the Congress “umbrella”, many with political parties to represent them. Does the current political scenario augur a reversal of this trend? NCP founder and former Congress veteran Sharad Pawar seems to think so. Earlier this week, he told this newspaper that “In the next couple of years, several regional parties will associate more closely with the Congress. Or they may look at the option of merging with the Congress if they believe that is the best for their party.”
Large swathes of India’s political landscape can indeed trace their roots to the Congress. Parties formed by leaders who left after Indira Gandhi took over and many that were firmed up after the Mandal moment have to varying degrees of associations with the Congress. Several of these leaders were either rebels or left due to ideological differences. Then there are parties — notably the NCP, Trinamool Congress and YSR Congress — that can broadly be seen as regional offshoots of the Congress. In Sharad Pawar’s analysis, the 2024 elections and the run-up to them have been a watershed moment, not least because of a large section of the Opposition coming together in the INDIA formation. But the path from alliance to anschluss — if it leads there at all — is neither smooth nor without detours and roadblocks.
“I don’t see any difference between the Congress and us… Ideologically, we belong to the Gandhi, Nehru line of thinking.” Sharad Pawar may be right about this consonance in the broadest sense, and as a veteran who has left the Congress, rejoined and left again, is best placed to make such a judgement. However, the fate of INDIA and any possible “mergers” will be determined by a variety of factors, not least the political picture on June 4. For some regional players, the BJP’s relative dominance may well require standing together — the logic behind INDIA — and even joining up. For the latter to make any strategic and organisational sense, though, the Congress must do well electorally — if it is further diminished, it is unlikely to be a political centre of gravity. As important, if not more, are regional compulsions. Mamata Banerjee’s actions on the national stage, for example, will be determined by the political situation in West Bengal: Competition between the Left, Congress and TMC has meant that there is no seat-sharing arrangement in the state. And alliance partners like the CPM and DMK are unlikely to ever join the Congress for ideological reasons. On the other hand, for some actors like Sharad Pawar, his erstwhile party wracked by splits and dissension, going back to the fold may make sense. At any rate, given the fluidity of political circumstances, the veteran’s thought experiment may well give other parties much to ponder.
