The Week India - July 29, 2018

8 THE WEEK^ • JULY 29, 2018

LETTERS

It is evident that opposition

parties, consisting largely of

regional parties with limit-

ed pockets of infl uence, are

wary of Modi and the NDA

securing another term in

offi ce, and will not mind

sublimating their egos to

stop Modi.

While THE WEEK’s

interviews with the regional

satraps reveal that they are

hopeful of coming togeth-

er, there are reasons to be

sceptical, as each of these

leaders would like to head

a coalition government, if

such a situation arises.

Th e only pan-India party

in the fray—the Congress—

is hardly in a position to call

the shots, as its base has

been severely eroded. But,

considering the fact that the

SP-BSP combine in Uttar

Pradesh defeated the BJP,

such moves on the part of

opposition parties should

not be taken lightly.

C.V. Aravind,

On email.

Th e BJP is undoubtedly the

strongest political party in

the country. It has com-

mitted voters, dedicated

workers and well-directed

strategies. Its spokespersons

can impress upon listeners,

if not by arguments, then at

least by body language.

Th e BJP has an unas-

sailable communication

department with a superb

network. Only a genuine-

ly united opposition can

challenge the BJP at the

national and state levels.

Th e main hindrance to

opposition unity, I feel, is

that there are too many

prime ministerial aspirants.

Only a party that has a

pan-India presence and

following can lead the

opposition, and that is the

Congress. Th e earlier the

other parties realise it and

act accordingly, the better.

K.K. Cherian,

Bengaluru.

I went through the inter-

view with Chandrababu

Naidu. It was a strange

argument put forth by

Naidu that the MLAs from

opposition parties joined

the Telugu Desam Party

after they supported his

developmental work. If so,

he should have asked those

defectors to resign and con-

test on a TDP ticket to prove

that people are with him.

By giving ministerial

berths to defectors, Naidu

has degraded the values of

parliamentary democracy.

Duggaraju Srinivasa Rao,

Vijayawada, Andhra

Pradesh.

Th e glue that sticks the

opposition parties together

is an anti-Modi revulsion,

but the pertinent question

is, will the glue wear thin

in the run up to the 2019

elections?

If united, the opposition

parties have a better chance

to score over the BJP in the

‘arithmetic’ and ‘humani-

ties’ in the electoral exam,

but will they be able to pass

muster in ‘chemistry’?

Raveendranath A.,

On email.

Convince the states

It is too early to say whether

the implementation of the

GST was a good or bad

decision; we need to wait

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has now become state-based seat adjustments. But he still What started as a grand alliance against Narendra Modi

has to outwit opposition leaders who have a common goal

JULY 15, 2018

$ 50

Confused lot

It is not going to be that easy for opposition parties to

fi ght as a single unit to stop the Narendra Modi jugger-

naut in 2019 (‘Team, a dream’, July 15). Th e Congress

should hold discussions with all like-minded parties and

plan a seat-sharing arrangement in every state. Yes, it is

happening. But, there is still confusion. Many leaders

don’t know whom to ally with in the fi ght against Modi.

Having alliances just for the sake of it is not good.

Most of these political parties, who are now uniting

against Modi, were at loggerheads with each other, or

with the Congress, at some point. People will call them

opportunists.

T.K. Prasad,

On email.