Divisive dilemmas

The Janata Dal (United) or the JD(U) and Om Prakash Chautala-led Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) have announced a pre-poll alliance for the Assembly elections in Haryana, which are scheduled for October 15. On Monday, the JD(U) claimed this was "an effort to unite the disintegrated Janata Dal parivar" to "keep divisive forces away from power". Both INLD and the JD (U) were part of the Janata Dal that led the National Front of 1989-90 at the Centre. In mid 2013, the JD(U) had walked out of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance. INLD, however, was keen to align with the BJP for the general elections. That couldn't come about since some BJP leaders opposed severing ties with Kuldeep Bishnoi's Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC). BJP and HJC parted ways earlier this month. The INLD leadership is said to be hopeful that BJP was unlikely to reach the majority mark in the Haryana Assembly and will have to turn to the Chautala-led party to form the government. The INLD-JD(U) unity will, therefore, rest on the success of the so-called divisive forces, exactly the obverse of the state objective of the putative alliance.