NEW DELHI: The process of Opposition consolidation gained further momentum on Friday as 19 parties participated in a meeting called by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, with regional parties dominating the narrative, saying all like-minded parties irrespective of their alliance with the Congress should be part of a united front to take on the BJP.
Following an hour-and-a-half long meeting, the Congress released a ‘joint statement’ demanding action from the Centre on 11 points. Soon thereafter, the Trinamool Congress issued a separate wishlist with just five points — vaccine for all, repeal farm laws, fuel and LPG price hike, Rs 7,500 per month dole to all outside the income tax bracket, and judicial probe on Pegasus.
During the meeting, regional parties indirectly told the Congress to drop its big brother attitude when West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and NCP chief Sharad Pawar said all parties who want to work together for saving democratic principles and ethos of our country must be allowed to come together.
The leaders who took part in the meeting were from TMC, NCP, DMK, Shiv Sena, JMM, CPI, CPI(M), NC, RJD, AIUDF, VCK, Loktantrik Janata Dal, JD(S), RLD, RSP, Kerala Congress (Mani), PDP and IUML. Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi also attended. AAP, BSP and SP gave it a miss.
The joint statement claimed SP chief Akhilesh Yadav couldn’t participate as he was touring the interior parts of UP. But Yadav tweeted his pictures with the British High Commissioner, who was in Lucknow. Addressing the virtual meeting, Sonia said the monsoon session of Parliament saw Opposition unity but the larger political battle has to be fought outside it and the ultimate goal is the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Time to bury ego, say Oppn leaders
“We have to begin to plan systematically with the singleminded objective of giving to our country a government that believes in the values of the freedom movement and in the principles of our Constitution. This is a challenge, but together we can and must rise to it because there is simply no alternative to working cohesively together.
We all have our compulsions, but clearly, a time has come when the interests of our nation demand that we rise above them,” she said. Banerjee also talked about keeping aside personal egos and proposed that there should be a core committee to rightfully address the issues that the people of India are facing.
“Every opposition party should be brought in to fight against BJP and for these meetings, those even not allied with the Congress must be invited,” she said, calling for reaching out to AAP, YRS Congress, TRS and BJD. NCP chief Sharad Pawar called for taking a time-bound action programme collectively to take on the BJP.
“Those who believe in democracy and secularism, those who like to work together for saving the democratic principles and ethos of our country must come together,” he said. The leaders have agreed to hold joint protests across India from September 10 to 20.
11-point chart er of demands
Five point agenda iss ued by TMC