As the top leadership of anti-BJP parties prepare to meet in Patna on June 23 to draft version 2.0 of Opposition unity, it is becoming clear that their chemistry in 2023 is vastly different from that of their previous avatar in 2018.
One of the most obvious differences is that the effort to bring all anti-BJP parties has started far in advance of the general election this time around. In 2018, the confabulations only began in November when Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee flew to Delhi to meet Congress leader Sonia Gandhi. The first meeting was held on December 10 and could not really transcend beyond political optics in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, barring an alliance in Uttar Pradesh between the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party. The Opposition is waking up to the challenge six months earlier this time around, giving them ample time to come up with a more cogent strategy.
