Strange Bedfellows: Congress Cozies Up to Former Rival Left Parties to Counter BJP's Rise
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The Congress and Left parties have been rivals since India's first election, but recently Rahul Gandhi seems fascinated with the communists and enjoys their company.
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The Left parties have influenced Congress decision-making and strategy, with several former Leftist student leaders now serving as Congress advisers.
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The Congress-Left alliance has been marked by contradictions and embarrassment, cooperating in some states like West Bengal while competing in others like Kerala.
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Historically, the Left parties have flip-flopped in their stance towards the Congress, at times denouncing it as imperialist and allying with it for pragmatic reasons at other times.
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In recent years, the rise of the BJP has brought the Congress and Left together in alliances against what they see as the saffron party's right-wing ideology.