Opinion: 2004 vs 2024 - Why Sonia Gandhi May Not Help Opposition Efforts

A bid to reconstruct the almost defunct United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and a possible rejuvenation of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will mark the beginning of next week, leading up to the start of the monsoon session of parliament. The two alliances, each pivoting around lead players BJP and Congress, will set the ball rolling for the next general election.

The Congress will host the follow-up of the Patna discussions of anti-NDA parties in Bengaluru. Seventeen parties gathered in Patna at the invitation of Nitish Kumar on July 17-18. For Round 2, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has expanded the list to 24 by including many smaller parties from the South. This window dressing by Kharge is designed to offset the BJP's bid to attract smaller parties in the North.

The NDA meeting on July 18 in Delhi will feature the BJP's new Maharashtra allies - the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). The return of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Shiromani Akali Dal to the NDA is being speculated. Karnataka's Janata Dal (Secular), Uttar Pradesh's Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP), Bihar's Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) and Hindustan Awami Morcha (HAM), along with the Chirag Paswan faction of the Lok Janshakti Party, are also being brought in to widen the NDA's caste base.