The Congress appeared to face a demand for justice from within the Opposition bloc INDIA hours before the Grand Old Party was to embark on an ambitious Nyay Yatra (Justice March) ahead of the general election.

Injustice had apparently been done to Bihar chief minister and Janata Dal United leader Nitish Kumar, who had expected to be appointed the INDIA convener from the outset. There was a broad consensus on this and even the Congress had seemed on board.

But a suggestion to appoint Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge as chairperson of the Opposition combine received instant approval at Saturday’s meeting while the indecision on the convener persisted.

Sources in the JDU said the entire party felt “humiliated” at Nitish Kumar’s anointment remaining stuck, amid indications from the Congress that the decision awaited a nod from Trinamul leader and Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee who did not attend Saturday’s meeting.

This prompted Nitish to say: “I withdraw my consent (to accepting the convener’s post).”

A JDU leader told The Telegraph: “We have no problem with Kharge as chairperson but are they taking Nitish Kumar lightly? Is he begging for the post? Why has
a decision not been taken after so many meetings? We definitely take this as an
affront.”

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar with Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav during the distribution of appointment letters to the newly-recruited teachers, at the Gandhi Maidan in Patna, Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024 PTI

Opposition leaders from Bihar were so incensed that they did not rule out both the JDU and the Rashtriya Janata Dal walking out of the INDIA bloc.

National Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar and CPI general secretary D. Raja said after the meeting that everyone was agreed on having Kharge as chairperson and Nitish as convener. But, they added, Nitish had declined the offer.

Even Kharge’s name has not been formally announced, with sources saying Rahul Gandhi had indicated that Mamata’s consent was required for this too. It is not a secret that Mamata is opposed to Nitish and wants Kharge to head the group.

Nitish saying he is not hankering after any post and would let the Congress head the group is clearly a sign of how upset he is at the mishandling of the situation. His aides have made no effort to conceal their leader’s frustration.

“They made a mess of it. Are they serious about fighting the 2024 election?” a young JDU leader said about the Congress.

“They first delayed the process by a month because of the Assembly elections and are showing procrastination tactics even now.”

Asked whether the JDU’s anger might affect the INDIA bloc’s future, an RJD leader told this newspaper over the phone from Patna: “The Congress should know better. They are talking of Nyay.”

The alliance has other reasons for worry: Mamata, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav and Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray did not attend Saturday’s virtual meeting.

While Uddhav had pre-scheduled meetings, Mamata is clearly uninterested in accommodating the Left and the Congress in Bengal.

There were, however, glad tidings as well. An Aam Aadmi Party team led by Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal met Kharge and Rahul in Delhi to discuss the seat-sharing formula. The interaction at the highest level suggested seriousness on both sides.

While the AAP and the Congress appear to have come to an accommodation in Delhi, problems persist over Punjab. The AAP is also demanding seats in Haryana, Gujarat and Goa.

The INDIA grouping doesn’t look like crumbling, but the narrative of total Opposition unity will collapse if the JDU and the RJD stop cooperating, or take the extreme step of deserting the alliance.

Rahul may have to deliver “justice” on this front before he achieves something substantial in his quest for justice — social, economic and political — for all citizens.