30 vs 26 for 2024: With less than a year left for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Opposition parties are leaving no stone unturned to flex their political muscles in order to woo voters. While 26 Opposition parties are set in Bengaluru on Monday and Tuesday (July 17-18) to resolve their differences and present a united front against the BJP, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has also announced a mega meet in New Delhi on Tuesday, expecting close to 30 parties to reaffirm their support for the alliance.
This is unprecedented that almost all major Opposition parties have decided to come together to oust Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre. Back-to-back general election wins have not only consolidated the saffron party's hold at the Centre but also left Opposition parties to think something out of the box in an attempt to turn the table.
The ruling BJP has stepped up preparedness ahead of the Assembly elections in five states later this year, as well as next year's Lok Sabha polls. Several new allies and some former ones, including Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) leader Chirag Paswan, may attend the BJP-led NDA meeting on July 18 in a show of strength by the ruling alliance. The meeting will be headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president JP Nadda.
Parties likely to attend NDA's meeting:
- Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
- Shiv Sena (SHS)
- Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-Ajit Pawar)
- Apna Dal (Sonelal)
- Republican Party of India (RPI)
- Jana Sena Party (JSP)
- National People's Party (NPP)
- Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM)
- Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP)
- Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas)
- Jannayak Janata Party (JJP)
- All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK)
- Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK)
- Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM)
- All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU)
- Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party (RLJP)
- Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC)
- Mizo National Front (MNF)
- Asom Gana Parishad (AGP)
- United People's Party Liberal (UPPL)
- Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt)
- All India NR Congress (AINRC)
- Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP)
- Nirbal Indian Shoshit Hamara Aam Dal (NISHAD)
- Rashtriya Samaj Paksha (RASP)
- Rashtriya Lok Janata Dal (RLJD)
- Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT)
- Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS)
- Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP)
- Naga People's Front (NPF)
Meanwhile, Congress has rallied support from a total of 25 parties for the second Opposition Unity meeting in Karnataka's Bengaluru beginning on Monday. Leaders of at least 26 Opposition parties will converge at a hotel in Bengaluru on July 17-18 as part of their efforts to present a united front against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the Centre. According to sources, the name of the opposition alliance will be decided, and the common minimum program will be discussed in the Bengaluru meeting. Moreover, several committees are expected to be formed which will hold meetings to deliberate on various problems that may arise in the alliance.
All bigwigs in the Opposition, including former Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, along with Rahul Gandhi are expected to attend the crucial opposition meeting in Bengaluru. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) also confirmed its presence at the meeting on Sunday. This came after the Congress made its stand clear and said that it will oppose the Centre's ordinance on administrative services in Delhi if a bill is brought to replace the ordinance in the Parliament.
Parties likely to attend Opposition's meeting:
- Indian National Congress (INC)
- Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)
- Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)
- Samajwadi Party (SP)
- Trinamool Congress (AITC)
- Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)
- Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)
- Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD)
- Communist Party of India (Marxist)
- Janata Dal United (JDU)
- Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)
- Shiv Sena (UBT)
- Communist Party of India (CPI)
- All India Forward Bloc (AIFB)
- Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation (CPI-ML)
- Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP)
- Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK)
- Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC)
- Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party (JKPDP)
- Indian Union Muslim League (IUML)
- Kerala Congress (Joseph)
- Kerala Congress (Mani)
- Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK)
- Kongunadu Makkal Desia Katchi (KMDK)
- Apna Dal (K)
- Manithaneya Makkal Katchi (MMK)
Lok Sabha elections 2014: How BJP, Congress fared?
In the 2014 parliamentary elections, the BJP received 31% of the vote and won 282 seats, while its National Democratic Alliance won a total of 336 seats. The BJP won 31% votes, while NDA's combined vote share was 38.5%. In contrast, the result was the worst-ever performance by the Congress, which had ruled India for most of its post-independence history. The grand old party received 19.3% of the vote and won only 44 seats, with its wider alliance, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), winning a total of just 59.
Lok Sabha elections 2019: How BJP, Congress fared?
Meanwhile, five years later, the BJP received 37.36% of the vote, the highest vote share by a political party since the 1989 general election, and won 303 seats. In addition, the BJP-led NDA won 353 seats. On the other hand, the Congress party won 52 seats, failing to get 10% of the seats needed to claim the post of Leader of the Opposition. In addition, the Congress-led UPA won 91 seats, while other parties won 98 seats.
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