As the Opposition INDIA bloc lurches from one crisis to another, the Congress on Saturday admitted that the optics regarding the alliance had taken a hit because of the rumblings in the alliance even as it expressed confidence about placating West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) chairperson Mamata Banerjee and sealing seat-sharing arrangements with other allies in a couple of days.

Pointing out that the Gandhis and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge respect Mamata, the party once again appealed to her to join Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra that is resuming its journey from Jalpaiguri in north Bengal on Sunday after a two-day break. Kharge has also written to Banerjee, flagging the possibility of “some miscreants” fomenting trouble for the yatra and seeking appropriate directions from her side “to ensure smooth passage of the yatra through Bengal and ensure safety of the yatris, including Gandhi”.

Interestingly, Kharge wrote, “I am aware that the Gandhi family and you share very cordial relations, and you would ensure that all security concerns would be addressed adequately.”

The INDIA alliance is, however, staring at a crisis in the battle of perception. While Bihar CM Nitish Kumar is all set to walk out of the bloc and return to the NDA fold, Banerjee and Aam Aadmi Party’s Bhagwant Mann have ruled out seat-sharing with the Congress in their states.

The Congress also admitted that Kharge had tried to contact Kumar twice or thrice but the two were unable to connect. Amid reports that a section of the Congress MLAs in Bihar could not be contacted, the party decided to rush former Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel to Patna as a special observer.

“The situation could be better. I won’t say it is tense. The optics, people are watching, the news that is coming in about one party that it is leaving, that it will form a government with the BJP, that one party is unhappy with us … dikhta acha nahin hai, INDIA ki chhavi ke liye acha nahi hai (this does not look good, it is not good for the perception about the INDIA alliance),” Congress communications head Jairam Ramesh told reporters.

Ramesh, however, said the alliance was not imploding. This even as senior JD(U) national spokesperson K C Tyagi said the INDIA alliance was on the verge of a collapse. “There is almost no alliance in Punjab, Bihar and West Bengal …The effort and intention with which Nitish Kumar had formed the INDIA alliance is on the verge of breaking due to the irresponsible and obstinate attitude of the Congress. Just one-and-a-half months are left for the elections, but there is no leader, no convener, no joint meetings, no common manifesto … ” Tyagi said.

But Ramesh said, “It is not imploding. We are showing our democratic credentials. People are expressing their views. They may have their own compulsions. But I believe that as far as the West Bengal Chief Minister is concerned, she has expressed certain concerns, she did say she wants to go alone. She has expressed some reservations about some comments made by some of my colleagues. But she ended up by saying she would fight the BJP uncompromisingly. So that is what gives us hope that ultimately we will find a middle path.”

He added, “I have not given up the search for a middle path. If you ask me personally. The optics could have been better. But there is no implosion. The BJP is working overtime to ensure that there is a mini implosion if not a maxi implosion. I am sure the BJP is doing its best.” Ramesh said Banerjee and Kumar were co-architects of the INDIA bloc, with the Bihar CM hosting the first meeting of the alliance at his residence in Patna last June.

The Congress, Ramesh said, was hopeful that the INDIA alliance would fight together in Bengal. He also dismissed reports that seat sharing among the INDIA parties was getting delayed because of the Congress. He said the parties had reached an agreement on several constituencies.

Asked about the arrangements that he said have been arrived at, Ramesh said, “I can’t give you an exact number. In Maharashtra, for example, we have a very good fix on how many seats the NCP, Shiv Sena (UBT), and the Congress will contest. We have a fairly good fix in Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand, we are getting there in UP. We don’t have a final fix. It is wrong to say that the Congress, it is wrong to say that seat sharing is not happening because of the Congress.”