Opposition leaders rally to rebuild unity
While the DMK has already snapped ties with the INDIA bloc, Congress Ally in TN, TVK too skipped the meeting in Delhi
On a day when prominent Parliamentarians of one of the constituents of Opposition bloc, Trinamool Congress, orchestrated a massive revolt, Congress leaders like Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav, RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, National Conference leader and Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah besides Left leaders called for the need to safeguard democratic values and address issues related to people’s livelihood during a meeting of the INDIA bloc in the national Capital on Monday.
While NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule, CPI(M)’s John Brittas, CPI’s D Raja and leaders of some smaller parties were also part of the deliberations, conspicuous by his absence was JMM chief and Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, who sent his representative. Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Uddhav Thackeray attended the meeting virtually.
One of the oldest alliance members of the Congress, DMK has already snapped ties from the INDIA bloc. But the grand old party’s new alliance partner in Tamil Nadu, TVK, also did not attend the meeting. AAP was never part of the deliberations, as they have opted out of the bloc.
The leaders began deliberations to help forge unity and rework their strategy to take on the BJP, while ironing out differences within after the defeat of regional outfits like the TMC and DMK in the recent Assembly polls.
As the Union Government is celebrating 12 years of governance, Opposition leaders demanded the Government should immediately call an all-party meeting to discuss the “precarious” economic situation, unemployment, price rise, farmers’ issues, and “atrocities” being committed on the oppressed sections.
Addressing the meeting, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge urged leaders to strengthen unity to confront the political, economic, social and foreign policy challenges facing the country due to the Modi Government’s “misgovernance”. He also highlighted that the economic environment is extremely negative and new investments are not coming in at the pace required to generate new jobs.
Kharge said the INDIA bloc leaders also decided to meet every two months, with the next meeting scheduled in Hyderabad for August, the date for which will be fixed later.
Leaders of PDP, CPI(M), CPI, CPI(ML), RSP, IUML, VCK, MDMK, Kerala Congress, Kerala Congress (M), RLP, BAP, Lok Dal, Forward Bloc and Shetkari Kamgar Paksh and Independent MP Kapil Sibal too gathered for the Opposition huddle.
The recent defeat of Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal has also forced the Opposition bloc to come together to take on the saffron surge in the country. The meeting comes after a long time as the last time they met was during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Rahul Gandhi had in August last year, hosted opposition leaders at his residence that brought together nearly 50 leaders from over 25 opposition parties.
Opposition leaders decided to write to the chief justice of India on the SIR exercise and “vote loot”, besides demanding the immediate resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET-CBSE row.
Flanked by Rahul Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav, Mamata Banerjee and other senior leaders of the grouping at a Press conference later, Kharge said, “We have agreed on five issues. A letter would be sent to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) soon on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, ‘vote loot’ and ‘stealing of elections’.
The opposition leaders also decided to continue coordination during the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament, with daily morning meetings at the office of the leader of opposition.
The leaders began the deliberations to help forge unity and rework their strategy to take on the BJP, while ironing out differences within after the defeat of regional outfits Trinamool Congress and DMK in the recent Assembly polls in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, respectively.
Talking to media in Mumbai, Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut insisted that the Opposition grouping should declare a prime ministerial face for the 2029 Lok Sabha polls.
“We have to face the 2029 Lok Sabha polls by projecting a prime ministerial candidate of the INDIA bloc. This has been (Shiv Sena UBT chief) Uddhav Thackeray’s stand,” Raut told reporters in Mumbai.
