26 Oppn parties likely to attend 2-day brainstorming session from Monday to take on BJP

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

opposition parties are likely to attend the two-day brainstorming session in Bengaluru from Monday where they will chalk out their strategy to unitedly fight against the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, according to sources. On the eve of the meeting hosted by it, the Congress clarified that it will oppose the ordinance on Delhi services in Parliament, a key condition put by the Aam Aadmi Party to attend the talks. Fifteen parties attended the last meeting for opposition unity hosted by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in Patna on June 23.

«This time we are expecting leaders of 26 parties,» a source said. The opposition meeting also comes in the backdrop of the split in the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the West Bengal panchayat polls which saw widespread violence that claimed many lives with state units of the Congress and Left parties accusing the TMC government of oppression. The sources said the opposition parties will chart out a joint agitational plan across the country against the policies of the BJP, especially after the NCP split in Maharashtra.

They said that the leaders will announce steps to further opposition unity to take on the BJP and «expose its attempts at toppling opposition governments and taking control over non-BJP-ruled states through the Governors». «It will be a decisive meeting. Several issues will be discussed,» Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said.

The BJP, however, hit out at the opposition parties, alleging that they are a «divided lot» and have no specific programme other than to defeat Prime Minister Narendra Modi. BJP president J P Nadda alleged that opposition parties were in the process of forming an alliance to «protect» their dynastic politics. The proposed