Political strategist Prashant Kishor, who has been critical of the Congress in the past few months, appeared to have softened his stand, and said that a robust opposition is not possible without Congress, and that it’s leader Rahul Gandhi can become the Prime. Minister.
In an interview to Times Now, Kishor said that the main opposition party still commands 20 per cent votes nationally and also cautioned that a united opposition doesn’t necessarily mean a strong opposition. Citing Bihar’s example, Kishor said that a united opposition there failed to defeat the BJP after the 2015 Bihar polls.
The remarks come in stark contrast to his earlier remarks where he criticised the Congress leadership and had said that an anti-BJP opposition front is possible without Congress. The stand fell perfectly with the pitch of Trinamool Congress which is trying to upstage the Congress party as the primary challenger to the BJP on a national level.
Changing tack on his approach to Rahul Gandhi, Kishor said that the Congress MP has the potential to become PM, but added that the party can run without the Gandhis. He also said that the Gandhi family can let a non-Gandhi run the Congress if all the leaders of the party desire so.
In response to another question, Kishor said that BJP can get more seats in the Assembly elections in 2022 as compared to what it won in 2017. When asked about a leader he wanted to work again with, Kishor named Bihar CM Nitish Kumar. On the question of a leader he would never want to work with, Kishor selected Amarinder Singh from an option of four leaders.
Kishor was also asked about TMC’s chances in Goa polls, to which he said that he doesn’t have the power to predict poll results. He did, however, say that his firm I-PAC’s agreement with the TMC may go beyond West Bengal.
Contradictory to the popular opinion, Prashant Kishor said that UP elections cannot be a decider for 2024 but maintained that the UP election is an important one. Reacting to Rahul Gandhi’s constant attack on Hindutva, Kishor said that it is unnecessary for Congress to rake up the Hindutva issue as the BJP loves this narrative.
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