Mamata Proposes Kharge As Face Of Opposition Alliance

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee proposed on Tuesday that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge be made the convenor of a committee to oversee seat sharing between the INDIA bloc constituents in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

She also said Kharge should be the prime ministerial face of the alliance. However, there was no decision on either of the proposals, sources said. They said Banerjee proposed making Kharge the face of the alliance, which was supported by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The proposal was not opposed by any leaders of the constituents of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA). However, the Congress stayed quiet on the proposal, which was turned down by Kharge, who said a decision on the prime ministerial face should be taken only after the election.

At a press conference after a meet of the INDIA parties, Kharge said any decision on the prime ministerial face will be taken after the polls. A group of top leaders from the Congress, TMC, DMK, AAP, JD(U), RJD, Shiv Sena, NCP, CPI(M), JMM and RJD will oversee the seat sharing between the INDIA constituents, the sources said.

According to sources, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) stressed at the meeting that while the other parties in the alliance will support the Congress, it should take a back seat in states like Uttar Pradesh, where Akhilesh Yadav (Samajwadi Party) should take the lead, Punjab and Delhi -- ruled by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) -- and West Bengal.

The party also cautioned that if an agreement on seat sharing is not finalised soon, the prospects of the alliance would be hurt. The issue of electronic voting machines (EVMs) was also raised by the TMC at the meeting. Banerjee had said on Monday that there should be 100 percent VVPAT (voter verifiable paper audit trail), along with electronic voting.

The TMC also said the opposition alliance should raise pro-people issues and not just be "anti-Modi".