Opposition to meet in Bengaluru on July 17-18

Shubhadeep Choudhury

New Delhi, July 3

The Congress today announced that the next meeting of Opposition parties a follow-up of the meeting held in Patna on June 23 would take place in Bengaluru on July 17 and 18.

RLD chief to attend

Rastriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary, who could not attend the June 23 meet,

on Monday told reporters that he would attend the Bengaluru meeting.

“Yesterday, when the BJP washing machine restarted in Mumbai with its ICE (Income Tax, CBI, ED) detergent, BJP-inspired obituaries on Opposition unity were being planted. The obit writers will be disappointed. The next meeting of the parties that met at Patna on June 23 will be held in Bengaluru on July 17 and 18. If anything, the Mumbai operations have strengthened Opposition resolve”, Jairam Ramesh, Congress general secretary (communications), said in a tweet.

KC Venugopal, general secretary (organisation), described the “all-Opposition meeting” in Patna as “hugely successful” and said the next meeting would be in Bengaluru. “We are steadfast in our unwavering resolve to defeat the fascist and undemocratic forces and present a bold vision to take the country forward,” Venugopal said. The Congress views the NCP split as a fallout of the war of succession within the party. It is a serious blow for Sharad Pawar, Congress sources note, while adding that Pawar would be able to retrieve his stature to some extent if he is able to persuade to return to the NCP fold some of the MLAs who have thrown their weight behind Ajit Pawar.

The sacking of Tamil Nadu minister V Senthil Balaji by Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi has been also instrumental in drawing various Opposition parties closer, sources say. While 15 parties had taken part in the meeting held in Patna, four more parties will be invited for the Bengaluru event. These are Revolutionary Socialist Party, All India Forward Bloc, Indian Union of Muslim Leagueand Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi.

Rastriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary, who could not attend the June 23 meet, today told reporters at Baghpat that he would attend the Bengaluru meeting.

The Arvind Kejriwal-led APP, which issued a strong statement after the Patna meeting, will expect assurance regarding opposing the controversial ordinance that wrests control from the elected government in Delhi over services.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, who was present at Patna, meanwhile, flew to Hyderabad today to meet Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekar Rao, suggesting he continues to be open to the idea of an anti-BJP front without the Congress.