The Opposition in India is being increasingly perceived as effete. The perception is not unwarranted. The parties, regional and national, that compete against the Bharatiya Janata Party, undoubtedly the dominant force on the Indian political map at the moment, seldom succeed in projecting an image of unity. Consider the rumblings that shook the Bengal legislature recently. When members of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) demanded that the Bengal chief minister bring a resolution against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens, Mamata Banerjee retorted that this was unnecessary given her strident opposition to both initiatives. Ms Banerjee does have a point. Unlike Bengal’s comrades and the state Congress, the chief minister read the public pulse correctly on the matter and has since headed the mobilization against the CAA-NRC. What may have riled Ms Banerjee further is the allegation that the Left had attempted to stoke violence in some places during the strike called by trade unions. This periodic adventurism against Ms Banerjee on the part of the Bengal CPI(M) exposes, once again, the Left’s failure to spot the real adversary. Blaming Ms Banerjee for its shrinking support base and the ascendancy of the BJP is rather callow. The people refuse to be enamoured of the CPI(M); the ground ceded is for the party to recover.

This is not to suggest that Ms Banerjee does not err in judgment. Her decision to not participate in a crucial meeting called by Sonia Gandhi that is expected to be attended by other members of the Opposition is an example of her petulance. Ms Banerjee’s presence would have certainly made a difference to the Opposition’s campaign. Her public appeal and organizational skills remain formidable. This unfolding tussle is likely to have broader implications. The persistent fissures in the Opposition’s ranks have helped bolster the BJP’s attraction among voters. Narendra Modi and his party have been adroit in exploiting this sentiment, repeatedly accusing the Opposition and its alliances of being opportunistic. Yet, there are also indicators of shifts on the ground. Jharkhand and, most strikingly, Maharashtra have demonstrated that voters are not averse to supporting a coalition of unlikely allies. This momentum needs to be nurtured further if the Opposition is to pose a serious challenge to the BJP. The squabble between the Left and Ms Banerjee in Bengal on such a critical issue as the CAA-NRC is bound to emit signals that are best avoided.