Opposition unity is definitely not on the Congress mind at this critical juncture when the leadership has undertaken the biggest-ever “padyatra” in the history of independent India, a gruelling struggle that is animated by the implicit quest for the party’s own political revival.

The Congress strategists fully understand that the Narendra Modi juggernaut cannot be stopped without restoring their own capacity to win a substantive number of seats. Modi won absolute majority both in 2014 and 2019 only because the Congress fell miserably below the 100-mark and no form of Opposition unity could have averted those disasters.

Communications chief Jairam Ramesh threw enough hints about the party’s thinking by asserting that the Bharat Jodo Yatra was for the revival of Congress, not for Opposition unity. Addressing a news conference in Delhi, Ramesh said: “We are happy that the message has gone out that the elephant has woken up. Every party, both the BJP and from the Opposition camp, is watching our movements. Opposition unity means nothing if the Congress is not strong.”

Ramesh added: “The purpose of Opposition unity cannot be to keep the Congress weak. Our allies should also understand that the Congress will have to regain its strength. Only a strong Congress can work like a pillar of strength for Opposition unity. If one of the outcomes of the Yatra is Opposition unity, that’s welcome. But the purpose is certainly not Opposition unity. Our focus is on strengthening the Congress.”

Ramesh said efforts to organise parallel yatras in states where Bharat Jodo Yatra was not passing through would be speeded up. This is clearly intended to stir up party workers throughout the country and make them part of this revival process. “On September 16, I and Digvijaya Singh will visit Assam to discuss the plan. We will go to Bengal on September 17, Odisha on the 18th, followed by Jharkhand and Bihar. We will do everything to revive the organisation in these states over the next five months.”

The Congress leaders expect to see signs of revival over the next few months, climaxing in change of political fortunes in 2024. Even the nature of electoral battles over the next one-and-a-half years doesn’t compel them to worry about Opposition unity. The Congress is traditionally locked in a straight battle with the BJP in Gujarat and Himachal, and the leadership has no desire to align with the new entrant Aam Aadmi Party in elections scheduled in these two states later this year.

The next big battle is Karnataka in May next year where the party has made up its mind not to align with the Janata Dal-S. Elections will happen in Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland in February next year where the main protagonists of Opposition unity have no role to play and the Congress relies on its own strength. Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh will go to polls

in December 2023 where the Congress is on its own against the BJP. Telangana will also have election at the same time and the Congress sees TRS of K. Chandrashekar Rao as its main enemy there.

A section of the Congress leadership is deeply suspicious of the intentions of Chandrashekar Rao , Arvind Kejriwal and Mamata Banerjee, remaining aloof to their efforts to sew up a credible alternative to the BJP.

They are clear in their mind that looking beyond trusted allies like the DMK, RJD, JMM, NCP and Shiv Sena is a futile exercise. However, the political dynamics can undergo a sea change by December next year, concretising the bargaining power of all the Opposition parties.