- A group made up of 26 different political parties has come together to form an alliance. They will be working together in the 2024 general elections. This alliance will be called INDIA, which stands for Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance. The UPA, which is led by the Congress party, has been in power at the national level two times before. So, why is this name not used anymore.
The group of 26 political parties that will compete against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections will be named INDIA, which stands for Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance.
The leaders of these parties made a decision on the second day of the meeting in Bengaluru today (18 July).
During a press conference, political party leader Mallikarjun Kharge, along with leaders from other parties, announced that everyone has agreed on using one name for the alliance. This information was reported by The Quint.
Before, our group had the name UPA (United Progressive Alliance). From now on, we will be known as the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance – INDIA. “
He also said that the next gathering of these 26 groups will happen in Mumbai.
Why did the Opposition alliance change its name. What did the parties say. Let’s find out.
From UPA to INDIA
The leaders of the Opposition parties hinted after the meeting in Patna in June that they might change the name of their group. According to the Hindustan Times (HT), they were thinking about using the name “Patriotic Democratic Alliance” or PDA.
However, the group of political parties disbanded after 2014 because the main political party had difficulties getting along with some of its previous partners.
In December 2021, Mamata Banerjee, who is the leader of Trinamool Congress and the chief minister of West Bengal, talked about the importance of regional parties working together to oppose the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in power. She said that the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) doesn’t exist.
Banerjee’s comments suggested that the Congress party is not capable of competing with the BJP by itself. As per the Indian Express, she may have meant that a new partnership is necessary where Congress should not always be the leader.
The Congress party won the 2004 Lok Sabha elections. A bunch of 14 political parties, with the Congress party as their leader, joined forces and formed a group after the election. The group of parties that made up the alliance included RJD, DMK, NCP, PMK, TRS, JMM, LJP, MDMK, AIMIM, PDP, IUML, RPI(A), RPI(G), and KC(J).
Four political parties, namely CPM, CPI, RSP, and Forward Bloc, supported the ruling UPA alliance from the outside.
However, over time, some of the friends began to not support the UPA anymore. The biggest problem happened in 2008 when the four Left parties stopped helping the government.
Even though Congress won the election in 2009 and gained power, the UPA alliance had less political parties supporting them. According to Indian Express, only a few parties, including TMC, NCP, DMK, National Conference, and the Indian Union Muslim League, took their oaths with the Congress.
AIMIM, VCK, Sikkim Democratic Front, and Bodoland People’s Front were included in UPA-2, but they didn’t have any ministers in the government. Afterwards, political parties such as TMC, DMK, AIMIM, and JVM-P from Jharkhand decided to leave the UPA gradually.
The Congress party did very poorly in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, winning only 44 seats. The Indian Express said that even though the group was still known as UPA, it technically did not exist after 2014.
The Party has said they do not want to lead the new alliance this time. Kharge told reporters today that his party is not interested in having power or becoming the prime minister.
He acknowledged that there are some disagreements among members of his party at the state level, but clarified that these differences are not based on their core beliefs or values.
When someone asked who will be in charge of the new group, the leader of Congress said they will create a committee with 11 members to coordinate and lead it. In that meeting in Mumbai, we will choose the 11 people who will participate and decide who will be the Convenor, and other important roles. “These are little things,” he said during the press conference together, according to NDTV.
Corruption allegations
Congress may want to change the name of UPA in order to improve its image, which has been damaged by accusations of corruption.
The BJP, including Modi, frequently made fun of the UPA for having family-based politics and being corrupt.
The leader of BJP, Jagat Prakash Nadda, criticized the UPA by saying it represents oppression, favoritism, and atrocities.
Today, the leader of India criticized the Opposition alliance, saying it is based on corrupt practices and family politics.
“When people gather, the country only sees dishonest behavior. ” Modi said that people think of the Opposition meet in Bengaluru as a group of corrupt people joining forces.
Furthermore, he criticized the Opposition parties by stating that in a democracy, the power ultimately lies with the citizens. But the rulers only have one way of doing things – they prioritize their own family above everything else.
Their main motto and source of inspiration is prioritizing their family over their nation, considering it to be more important.
INDIA vs NDA in 2024
The West Bengal chief minister, in simple terms, said that the meeting held today was positive, helpful, and productive. He also challenged the ruling NDA government to oppose the opposition’s idea of INDIA.
We are facing a difficult task. Can NDA challenge India. Can BJP challenge India. Banerjee asked, as reported by NDTV.
Jitendra Ahwad from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) praised Rahul Gandhi from the Congress party for suggesting the name INDIA for the alliance. “He said in a tweet that his creativity was highly valued. “
According to sources, the Left parties wanted to replace the word “Alliance” with “Front” for the united Opposition group. Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray, who used to be the chief minister of Maharashtra, suggested that the name shouldn’t include the word “opposition,” according to the report.
According to NDTV, Gandhi said after the meeting: “We are fighting to make sure India’s voice is heard. That’s why we chose the name Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA). ” The battle is happening between NDA and INDIA; it is a conflict between Narendra Modi and INDIA, their beliefs, and INDIA.
We are protecting the Indian constitution, which represents the thoughts and opinions of our citizens, and the vision we have for our wonderful country, India.
At the same time, a written agreement from 26 political parties not in power stated their commitment to protect the concept of India as stated in the Constitution. The basic principles of the Indian Constitution – separation of religion and state, controlling the country’s economy, fairness in society, and sharing of power between different levels of government – are being purposely and dangerously weakened.
“We are joining forces to fight against the hate and violence targeted at minority groups. We want to put an end to the increasing crimes against women, Dalits, and Adivasis.
We are also advocating for equal opportunities for all communities that face social, educational, and economic disadvantage. As a starting point, we aim to carry out the Caste Census,” stated the 26 parties in the document.
