Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar has suggested that the Opposition should focus on state alliances and project a national face only after the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. In an interview to the Hindustan Times published on Monday, Pawar compared the current political situation in the country to the Emergency, and said disillusionment against Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already set in.

The NCP chief said United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda should help him unite the Opposition. He said the two leaders, like him, had “no ambition to become the prime minister”.

“I have ambition to bring all these forces together and provide a viable alternative,” Pawar told the Hindustan Times. “For that, some of us – the names I have mentioned – can travel throughout India and give confidence to the people of India.” He said his party will contest 30 to 35 seats across the country. “With that number, if anyone dreams of becoming PM of this country, he is quite away from reality.”

Pawar compared Modi’s government to the Indira Gandhi government of 1975-’77. He said like the former prime minister, Modi too had “control of media, government and government agencies”.

“The difference is there was one leader – Jayaprakash Narayan,” Pawar told the daily. “Political leaders and people were willing to accept his advice. And ultimately on his advice, most leaders forgot their parties.”

Pawar urged the Congress to adopt a “rational approach” when it comes to deciding alliances in the states. The veteran leader said regional parties should concede space to the Congress where it is a dominant force while the Congress should also realise that “its era of total dominance was over”.

He added that the NCP-Congress alliance in Maharashtra was open to including Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party in its fold. “She [Mayawati] has consolidated the position in Uttar Pradesh with Samajwadi Party and others,” said Pawar. “…She is totally for a change and she is ready to work hard.”

Pawar praised Congress President Rahul Gandhi, and said he has “substantially improved”. He said Gandhi had broadly agreed with him on the election strategy. “He [Rahul Gandhi] said there are some states where it is difficult for my colleagues to accept or digest this situation, particularly Kerala and West Bengal,” said Pawar. “In Kerala, they feel our fight with the Left is equal. In West Bengal, the position is not like Kerala, but the overall thinking of the leadership of the Congress party about Mamata [Banerjee] is such that it is difficult for them to accept her. He told me that it is difficult in these two-three states. I told him you are the leader, and it is your job to convince.”