Congress Leaders Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge Hint at Possible Coalition with TDP and JDU Amid Close Electoral Results

GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 5th June. Not ruling out an attempt at government formation by the INDIA bloc, Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge have indicated that a decision on reaching out to the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the Janata Dal United (JDU), both former allies of the party, will be made at an opposition alliance meeting tomorrow.

This statement gains significance as a narrow margin of only 60 seats separates the NDA and INDIA blocs, which currently stand at 292 and 232 seats, respectively. The BJP has fallen short of a majority, leading in 240 constituencies, including 62 won seats, as of 6:10 PM. Meanwhile, Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP has secured 16 seats and the JDU has 12.

During a press conference, when asked whether the Congress had decided to sit in opposition or attempt to form the government, Gandhi responded, “We are going to have a meeting with our INDIA alliance partners, I believe the meeting is tomorrow, and these questions will be raised and answered there. We respect our partners and we are not going to make a statement in the press without seeking their opinion.” Pressed further, the Wayanad MP, who has won his seat for a second time and achieved victory in Rae Bareli as well, added, “There is a fine line… We will act according to the decision taken by the INDIA alliance.”

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, when posed the same question, hinted at the possibility of new partners joining the coalition. Speaking in Hindi, Mr. Kharge said, “Until we talk to our alliance partners… and the new partners that could join us about how we could work together and get a majority, we will see. If I reveal all our strategies now, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will become wary (‘hoshiyar ho jayenge’).”

Reports have surfaced about some members of the INDIA camp, particularly Sharad Pawar, reaching out to Naidu and Kumar this afternoon, though the NCP leader has refuted these claims. The TDP-BJP alliance was firmed up just before the elections, and even before counting began, experts speculated that Naidu might switch sides if he saw more benefits with the INDIA bloc. The TDP was part of the United Progressive Alliance in 2019. Nitish Kumar’s association with the Congress is even more recent, having played a pivotal role in the creation of the INDIA bloc before rejoining the NDA in January. The Bihar Chief Minister had previously severed ties with the BJP ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections due to the party’s nomination of Narendra Modi as the prime ministerial candidate.