Can anti-BJP parties unite?
A very intense discussion is going on in the corridors of politics on whether defeating the communal BJP is possible during the most crucial 2019 Lok Sabha elections. A close look may reveal defeating BJP is not even any easier. At the same time, it is not a herculean challenge too. BJP has not fulfilled many promises it had made to the public in the run up to the elections. People have suffered through GST and demonetization processes. But at the outset, Modi’s charm has not waned with time or challenges. People still place their trust on him.
But some awakening seems to have happened among the opposition parties, with less than a year to go for the Lok Sabha polls. The anti-BJP parties now know if they do not unite, they can never stop the BJP juggernaut. However, the saving grace is also the fact that the bypolls in UP show anti-BJP parties can come together to defeat BJP. SP and BSP came together in the Uttar Pradesh to fight the bypolls and won against BJP candidates.
And when the new CM representing the JD(S) and Congress coalition took oath, anti-BJP parties came together in Bengaluru starting from Trinamool Congress to Marxist Communist party to send out a strong message. They put up a united front. Along with regional parties, even Congress took part in this display of solidarity.
Though BJP President Amit Shah and Prime Minister Narendra Modi come refer to ‘Congress-mukt’ Bharat, their main aim is to achieve a democracy-mukt Bharat and opposition parties-mukt Bharat. They want a free run, and do not like anybody questioning them. Hence, Congress is not their sole aim but they want to wipe off regional parties from the map of India as well. They snatched power from the hands of CPM in Tripura, the illegal means by which they formed a government in Goa, their attempts to kill Dravida parties in Tamil Nadu, and their unrelenting efforts to finish off regional parties in other parts of the nation show their eagerness to achieve their goal. Amit Shah and Modi are supported by RSS. Sangh Parivar believes both of them can deliver the dream nation Parivar wants to build. Corporates too love the duo because they protect the interest of private sector. They would love to see Modi continue in the same position.
Hence, the upcoming Lok Sabha elections are very crucial. The opposition parties need to lock this sturdy unchallenged horse in the stable. Congress alone cannot do this, and even the party knows it well. That’s the reason Congress reached out to offer support to JD(S) to form government when the party didn’t get a majority in the Karnataka elections. The talks between Cong high-command and JD(S) Supremo Devegowda bore fruits. When the new government came into existence, the leaders ensured it sent a larger message to BJP than just a swearing in ceremony of anti-BJP government. The split in opposition parties is the main reason for BJP’s victory in many places. In UP, BSP and SP contesting separately, ensured a total of 73 seats for them. Had they contested together, the parties probably wouldn’t have been able to achieve this is something they know from the bypolls conducted for 2 seats in that state. BJP and Shiv Sena together had entered coalition in Maharashtra and won 48 Lok Sabha seats with BJP winning 23 and Shiv Sena clinching 18 seats.
Congress and Sharad Pawar’s NCP had contested separately for this elections. But if the anti-BJP parties come together, the challenge for BJP will only get bigger and a lot more complicated. Last time Telugu Desam had joined hands with BJP in Andhra and now both have split ways. There are chances of left parties entering into an agreement with Andhra in the upcoming elections, making BJP’s prize run a bit tougher. Yet, the solidarity of anti-BJP parties is laden with challenges too. They are not together in total understanding and solidarity. Communist and Congress parties are major opponents of BJP in Kerala. Trinamool Congress and CPM pose solid challenge to BJP in West Bengal. Congress has adopted soft approach towards regional parties in Karnataka, and this has to continue till the parties face 2019 elections. All these provisions have to be made for 2019 Lok Sabha elections to put up a strong front against BJP. They need to come together under common programme to defeat BJP in 2019 elections.
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Rupee hits all-time low for second time in a week
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee depreciated 31 paise to settle at 91.99 against the US dollar on Wednesday, touching the lowest closing level for the second time in less than a week, amid increased month-end demand for the greenback.
Forex traders said the rupee opened higher as the US dollar index softened and a long-awaited trade breakthrough with Europe offered quiet reassurance. However, increased month-end demand for the American currency as well as the ongoing geopolitical tensions dented investors' sentiments.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 91.60 and touched an early high of 91.50, but pared all the gains to touch an intra-day low of 91.99 against the greenback.
The domestic unit settled 31 paise down, revisiting its lowest-ever closing level of 91.99 against the greenback. The Indian currency previously ended at this level on January 23 when it also hit its all-time intraday low of 92 against the US dollar.
On Tuesday, the rupee rebounded from its all-time low levels and gained 22 paise to close at 91.68 against the US dollar.
Analysts said the rupee opened higher as the US dollar index softened and a long-awaited trade breakthrough with Europe bolstered investor sentiment.
India and the European Union on Tuesday announced the conclusion of negotiations for the free trade agreement (FTA), under which a number of domestic sectors such as apparel, chemicals and footwear will get duty-free entry into the 27-nation bloc, while the EU will get access to the Indian market at concessional duty for cars and wines, an official said.
The deal has been dubbed the "mother of all deals" as it will create a market of about 2 billion people.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.07 per cent lower at 96.14.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.43 per cent lower at USD 67.28 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, Sensex jumped 487.20 points to settle at 82,344.68, while Nifty surged 167.35 points to 25,342.75.
Foreign Institutional Investors turned net buyers and purchased equities worth Rs 480.26 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
