TMC is encroaching on the Opposition space at the national level as Mamata eyes a larger role
The party is driven by Ms. Banerjee’s charisma rather than an ideology. The TMC has swung both ways — alternating between the BJP and the Congress in the past. The Bengal government run by the party does not shy away from celebrating the anniversary of Shyama Prasad Mookerjee, the founder of Jana Sangha, as a proud son of Bengal. Though the edge of her politics is anti-BJP at the moment for strategic considerations, it is the Opposition parties, particularly the Congress that is paying for her expansion spree. Between 2011 and 2021, the entire rank and file of the Congress shifted to the TMC in West Bengal, and the story is being repeated now in other States. On Wednesday, 12 of the 17 Congress MLAs in Meghalaya joined the TMC. Sushmita Dev and Luizinho Faleiro, defectors from the Congress, are central to the TMC plans in Tripura and Goa, respectively. The induction of Ashok Tanwar, a former Congress MP from Haryana, and a Dalit, may signify a broader plan for the Hindi States. Dalit politics is at a crossroads in the heartland as the BSP is facing extinction, and there is vacuum to be filled. Ms. Banerjee has been outspoken on questions regarding federalism, and the Centre’s unilateralism that undermines it. Whether all this is sufficient to catapult the TMC as the axis of anti-BJP politics nationally is an open question. At the moment, the TMC challenge is less to the BJP and more to the Congress.
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