Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge announced a five-member National Alliance Committee on December 19, just before the meeting of the INDIA bloc got underway. The panel includes party veterans Ashok Gehlot, Salman Khurshid, Bhupesh Baghel, Mukul Wasnik, and Mohan Prakash.
“In the run-up to the General Elections-2024, Hon’ble Congress President has constituted an National Alliance Committee…,”party general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal said in a statement.
The timing of the announcement is significant as it came just before the meeting of the top leaders of the Indian National Developmental, Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) in the capital.
Alliances have become a contentious issue within the party, with former Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Kamal Nath having refused to share any seats with the Samajwadi Party (SP) in the recent State Assembly election, which the party lost. The SP chief Akhilesh Yadav had threatened to walk out of the INDIA bloc, but Mr. Kharge is learnt to have reached out to him.
Partnerships with other INDIA allies have also become a prickly topic. Punjab and Delhi, the State Congress units have opposed any tie-up with the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Similarly, in Kerala, the Congress cannot hope to have an alliance with the Left Front; in Uttar Pradesh, on the other hand, the SP has expressed reservations about giving away too many seats to the Congress.
