THE ALLIANCE puzzle is yet to be solved, the much talked about common minimum programme is a job well begun but only half done, and the poll campaign theme and slogan are far from final. As the Election Commission announced the Lok Sabha poll schedule on Sunday, the Congress, which leads the Opposition block, is yet to put together the nuts and bolts of electioneering.
The Opposition had appeared to have gained an upper hand — perhaps for the first time since 2014 — in the immediate aftermath of the BJP’s defeat in the assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. But the Pulwama terror attack and Balakot air strike have derailed its momentum.
The Opposition parties are trying to counter the nationalistic discourse that the BJP is seeking to set. The Congress, particularly, is trying to bring the focus back on the Rafale deal, bank fraud cases,…