Third front? It’s still very fuzzy...
Names differ from time to time, but the idea of a coming together of regional parties when Lok Sabha elections are close has become a regular feature of the political chessboard in recent years. A simultaneous process is also on display as some regional parties position themselves to tie up with the two principal parties in the field — the Congress and the BJP.
In the end, typically, where a regional party finds itself depends on the number of seats it gets in relation to the two national parties and other regional outfits. And there is no surprise that Trinamul Congress chief and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee should have fired the first salvo to establish the Federal Front this time.
Ms Banerjee had left the UPA and its alliance with the Congress touting the issue of safeguarding the country’s federal character in the discussion in Parliament on the question of FDI in multi-brand retail and the setting up of the National Counter-Terrorism Centre. It is apt, then, that she should strive toward forming a third front, foregrounding the federal features of the Constitution.
But no matter what name is chosen, the point is to bring to Parliament sufficient numbers of MPs from different regional parties that would agree to oppose both the Congress and the BJP. The trouble, of course, is that some regional parties also oppose the Left (while others don’t). The Trinamul Congress itself is the best example of this. Also, some regional parties oppose one another, as with the JD(U) and the RJD in Bihar.
It appears that there is not enough glue at this stage to bind the regional formations together, other than some amorphous ambition of some regional leaders, and there are just too many of those — Mulayam Singh Yadav, Mamata Banerjee, and possibly Nitish Kumar, for starters.
The JD(U)’s expression of unease with the idea of sticking to the BJP after Gujarat CM Narendra Modi’s elevation in the saffron party has decided Ms Banerjee’s moment for announcing the name of the front she has in mind. Orissa CM Naveen Patnaik, UP leader Mulayam Singh Yadav and Babulal Marandi’s Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (Prajatantrik) have expressed interest. But it is early days yet. The JD(U) is still in the NDA despite all the recent confusion. Also, many other regional parties are holding back their counsel. The direction of the wind is still to manifest itself.
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