India elections: BJP may need the allies Narendra Modi drove away
- Regional parties could prove to be kingmakers if neither of the big two secure a majority
- But an ‘abusive and degenerate’ campaign by the prime minister has alienated those who may hold the keys to power
On Tuesday the fierce rivalry between their supporters spilled onto the streets, resulting in violence in Kolkata. The unrest forced the country’s election authorities to ban all rallies planned for Friday, the last day of campaigning.
But 1,500km northwest of the city, a much more significant development was unfolding in New Delhi. Sonia Gandhi, a former president of the Indian National Congress, the main rival of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), was sending out letters to smaller, regional parties in an attempt to stitch together a meeting for May 23 – the day India’s votes will be counted.
Around the same time, another senior Congress leader said for the first time during the campaign that the party would not insist on occupying the post of prime minister if regional parties agreed to enter a governing coalition.
These shifts attracted far less media attention but are a sign of things to come. Despite Modi’s popularity, May 23 may throw up a scenario in which regional parties hold the keys to power for the Congress and BJP.
There are already enough indications that the idea isn’t just wishful thinking on the part of the country’s political opposition.
