In more than one article published in The Hindu, Gopalkrishna Gandhi has made clear his wish, subtly or directly — to see the Bharatiya Janata Party removed from power both at the Centre and in States. His article, “Heed the echoes of June 4” (Editorial page, June 4), is one more instance of this. Towards this end, he has eloquently advocated unity among the Opposition parties which includes the Left. But the question is whether those who come together on such a narrow agenda can stay united for a full term. One recalls how during the UPA’s rule (2004-2014), the constituents arm-twisted a helpless Prime Minister at every turn, starting from the allocation of ministerial berths to exiting, leaving behind a trail of mega-scams. As for the Left, after promising outside support, it blocked the Congress-led UPA government from making crucial decisions before withdrawing support over the signing of the India-U.S. civil nuclear deal. If UPA-I still survived, it was due to conditional support. The people should get a government the majority elect in 2019.
V. Jayaraman,
Chennai
An Opposition alliance that is composed of units that are in synchrony with the other is the need of the hour if such a formation is to take on the BJP. The 2019 election will be a fight against communalism. After four years at the Centre, there is little to cheer about for the BJP. The ruling party has been following almost everything that is unconstitutional, the economy is in a shambles and foreign relations are at an all-time low. What the BJP needs to realise is that people cannot be swayed by appealing to just their religion or caste.
Vimal Varghese,
Angamaly, Kerala