New Delhi: According to senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, the 2024 general elections will be exciting. He said that if the opposition as a whole unites around one candidate in every constituency and fights BJP, then the saffron party will see a tough challenge, PTI reported.
Tharoor believes that BJP might not find it easy to have a sweeping victory as it did in 2019. Stating that Congress will be the fulcrum of any Opposition alliance, he said it is the only party that has a national presence, other than BJP, and also have a strong base in many of the states, including Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
"I think that the main lesson here, of course, and we have seen from the last two elections, which the BJP won with 31 and 37 per cent votes, respectively, is that the divided Opposition plays into the BJP's hand," he said.
He underscored the importance of Opposition unity and added that it should be through a pre-poll alliance or choosing seats wisely.
Citing JD(U), BJP's former ally, joining hands with the Opposition in Bihar, he argued that there were many significant changes in the country since the 2019 elections.
"Much has changed since the BJP won a record number of seats with its ally in 2019, which is no longer its ally (in Bihar). Similarly, there are other states in which the BJP either had a clean sweep or won all but one seat in the state. I don't think that pattern will replicate itself so easily in 2024," Tharoor said.
He further added that there could be the anti-incumbency trend in the country. "I think it is going to be an exciting election. I do not agree with those who have written off the Opposition prospects in 2024," he said.
Then he talked about the merits Bharat Jodo Yatra brought. "We have seen that the public reaction to the Bharat Jodo Yatra, especially the culmination in Kashmir, was far greater than anybody, whether our critics or our admirers, had anticipated," he said.
The Yatra not only transformed Rahul Gandhi but has given a new self-belief to the Congress workers, which in turn contributes to revitalising the party to the challenges that lie ahead, he added.