At the heart of the explorations for a “Third front” was the quest for dalit votes.
Third Front in 2019:
Putting another spanner into the Congress’ dreams of a unified Opposition and forming a grand alliance for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, a section of regional satraps and the Left parties have begun parleys to cobble up a “third front”. The parties which have begun talks include the Bahujan Samaj Party, Janata Dal (Secular), Rashtriya Lok Dal, Biju Janata Dal, the Left parties and Trinamul. The first such experiment is likely to be tried out in the coming crucial Lok Sabha bypolls in three Uttar Pradesh seats — Kairana, Phulpur and Gorakhpur.
Reason behind explorations for a Third Front :
One of the main reasons behind the explorations for a third front was that most regional satraps have issues about accepting Rahul Gandhi as the leader of any anti-BJP front, a senior Opposition leader said. Trinamul Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has already made a list of desirable attributes in a leader of such an alliance, and it does not fit Mr Gandhi’s bill.