Not just Mamata, buzz also about Jagan Mohan, Sharad Pawar doing ‘ghar wapsi’

Amid speculation that the Trinamool Congress (TMC) was considering a closer alignment with its parent party, the Congress, perhaps also a merger to safeguard its political future, similar chatter is also emerging around former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and his Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) and the NCP-led by Sharad Pawar.

Sources claim “informal discussions and backchannel contacts between the Congress leadership and the YSRCP,” fuelling speculation about a possible political understanding, even a ‘ghar wapsi’ to the grand old party, though neither side has confirmed any such move.

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The situation in Andhra Pradesh is said to be a bit complicated by family political dynamics. The Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) is headed by YS Sharmila, Jagan Mohan Reddy’s sister, who merged her own political outfit with the Congress. Sharmila and Jagan do not share cordial relations and observers say any arrangement involving the YSRCP and the Congress would bound to face resistance from some quarters.

Like Mamata Banerjee and Sharad Pawar before him, Jagan Mohan Reddy broke away from the Congress following differences with the party leadership. He founded the YSRCP in 2011 after the death of his father, former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy, in a helicopter crash.

Mamata Banerjee: broke away from the Congress in 1998 to form the TMC and Sharad Pawar in 1999 to launch the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).

Riding on a sympathy wave, Jagan Mohan emerged as a major political force in the state, winning 67 Assembly seats in 2014. Five years later, he led the party to a landslide victory, securing 151 of the 175 Assembly seats and becoming Chief Minister. However, the party suffered a reversal in the 2024 when the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), the BJP and the JSP joined hands to sweep the polls, reducing the YSRCP to just 11 seats.

Interestingly, reports of the TMC merging with the Congress also triggered speculations about the possibility of the NCP (SP) going back to its parent party. Recently Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said the time has come for regional parties that originated from the Congress, such as the TMC and NCP (SP), to rejoin the Congress if they genuinely wanted to defeat the BJP. Maharashtra Congress leader Nana Patole, too, earlier indicated that the possibility was discussed but there has been no fresh development on the issue.

All concerned—the YSRCP, the TMC and the NCP(SP)—have chosen to remain silent on these reports of merger with the Congress.

Political observers say mergers between the Congress and regional parties such as the TMC, the YSRCP and the NCP led by Sharad Pawar are easier discussed than executed. Regional outfits are built around strong state-level identities, individual leadership and local political issues, making a complete political integration difficult.

While a merger could create a more unified front against the BJP and reduce opposition vote fragmentation, it could also trigger leadership conflicts and weaken regional identities. In Andhra Pradesh, for instance, any attempt to bring the Congress and the YSRCP under a common political umbrella runs the risk of fanning the existing rivalry between Jagan Mohan and Sharmila. Similar challenges exist elsewhere, where regional leaders may be reluctant to give up political space to a national party.