NEW DELHI: Opposition leaders, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson
Sonia Gandhi, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, attended the INDIA bloc meeting in New Delhi on Monday amid growing concerns over divisions within the alliance.
The meeting at the Constitution Club comes after assembly election setbacks for several opposition parties and against the backdrop of disagreements among alliance partners in multiple states.
Congress general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal claimed the BJP was “scared” of the opposition gathering and dismissed questions over posters critical of Rahul Gandhi that appeared at several locations in the national capital ahead of the meeting.
DMK, AAP skip meeting
According to Congress leader Jairam Ramesh, representatives of 23 political parties were expected to participate in the meeting.
However, several major regional parties were either absent or represented by leaders other than their top leadership. The DMK stayed away from the meeting after Congress ended its alliance with the party in Tamil Nadu and joined hands with actor Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK). No major party from Tamil Nadu attended the gathering.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which exited the INDIA bloc after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, also skipped the meeting.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray attended virtually, while Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren did not travel to Delhi and deputed party leader Sarfaraz Ahmed to represent the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM).
Among those attending in person were Tejashwi Yadav, Omar Abdullah, Abhishek Banerjee, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) president Thol Thirumavalavan, CPI leader D Raja, CPM MP John Brittas, CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya and other opposition leaders.
Left parties attend despite diffrences
Differences between Congress and Left parties also surfaced ahead of the meeting. CPI general secretary D Raja said the Left would raise concerns over remarks made by Congress leaders during the Kerala Assembly election campaign, including allegations that the Left Democratic Front had links with the BJP.
The CPM has also conveyed its concerns to Congress regarding what it described as a “systematic campaign” against its leadership during the Kerala polls, though it decided to participate in the meeting.
The gathering is being seen as an attempt by opposition parties to close ranks ahead of upcoming elections, particularly the 2027 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections and the 2029 Lok Sabha polls.
