Opposition parties yesterday declared that their alliance to take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP would be called INDIA - an acronym for Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance, which was proposed by West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee. Soon after the initial announcement, doubts emerged during the press briefing after the opposition conclave in Bengaluru. "We have come together and discussed various points. With one voice, people supported the resolution adopted today. Our alliance will be called Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA)," said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge in the joint press conference.
Post press conference Congress tweeted D for developmental" instead of "democracy". To make matters worse, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Sharad Pawar's tweet confirmed that the confusion was real. “United We stand with I - Indian N - National D - Democratic I - Inclusive A – Alliance,” tweeted the veteran leader, with the hashtag #SaveDemocracy, only to edit it later. His new tweet has D for "Developmental". Mamata Banerjee, speaking at the press conference on the name of the alliance, said: "BJP, can you challenge INDIA? We love our motherland, we are the patriotic people of the country, we are for farmers, Dalits, we are for the country, for the world…INDIA will win, our country will win and BJP will lose."
Meanwhile, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma took a dig at the opposition alliance's name 'INDIA' claiming that it was the British who named the nation India. Taking to the micro-blogging site Twitter, Sarma said, ''Our civilizational conflict is pivoted around India and Bharat''.' 'The British named our country India. We must strive to free ourselves from colonial legacies. Our forefathers fought for Bharat, and we will continue to work for Bharat,'' he added. Sarma statement comes after on July 17 Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge announced the name of the opposition alliance that would lock horns with the ruling NDA in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections as Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA). Quipping at the Opposition alliance's new name -- INDIA -- BJP’s I-T head Amit Malviya said, “Changing name does not change the nature”. Sharing a video of Kharge, BJP leader Amit Malviya, tweeted: "You can see their commitment from the fact that the Congress President can’t even pronounce ‘India’!" The BJP leader went on to say that mere change of name will not make the opposition alliance credible and drew an analogy between the banned radical organisation SIMI and the opposition grouping.
The group also plans to set up a common secretariat for campaign management in Delhi with specific committees being formed for separate issues. Seat-sharing plans will be mutually discussed by all leaders and coordination committee members. The next meeting of the INDIA alliance will be held in Mumbai. The INDIA alliance is a significant development in Indian politics, as it marks the first time that a large number of opposition parties have come together to form a united front against the ruling NDA. The alliance is likely to give the NDA a run for its money in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.