Opposition meet begins in Patna to formalise strategy for 2024 Lok Sabha polls

The highlyanticipated Opposition meeting began in Bihars Patna hosted by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to chalk out a roadmap for the formation of an antiBJP front for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls reported news agency PTIThe Opposition picked Patna as a venue for its meeting as it represents the 1974 call of total revolution by Jayaprakash Narayan that toppled Indira Gandhis majority governmentThe meeting is being hosted by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his deputy Tejashwi YadavCongress president Mallikarjun Kharge party leader Rahul Gandhi West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee her Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal Punjabs Bhagwant Mann Tamil Nadus M K Stalin Jharkhands Hemant Soren Samajwadi Party supremo Akhilesh Yadav Maharashtras former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and NCP president Sharad Pawar are among the leaders attending the first highlevel Opposition meetingA day before the crucial deliberations fissures in the Opposition ranks came to the fore with Aam Aadmi Party AAP sources saying the party will walk out of the meeting if the Congress does not promise its support against the Centres ordinance on the control of administrative services in DelhiAll eyes are on the meetings agenda and whether the Centres ordinance on the control of administrative services in the national capital would be a key part of the discussions as the AAP wantsKeeping cards close to its chest the Congress has so far kept its stand ambiguous as to whether it would support the AAP or not when the ordinance is put to test in Parliament by the BJPled CentreAsked about the ordinance issue and AAPs ultimatum Kharge before leaving for Patna on Friday morning said his party would take a decision on it before Parliaments Monsoon session and wondered why it was being talked about elsewhere when it was a matter that pertains to ParliamentOpposing or proposing it does not happen outside it happens in Parliament Before Parliament begins all parties decide what issues they have to work on together They know it and even their leaders come to our allparty meetings I dont know why is there so much publicity about it outside Kharge saidAhead of the meeting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said all Opposition parties are going to defeat the BJP in the 2024 general elections unitedlyAccusing the BJP of working to divide India and spread hate and violence he asserted that a fight of ideologies is going on in IndiaOn one hand there is the Congress Bharat Jodo ideology and on the other the BJP and RSS Bharat Todo ideology Gandhi said addressing party workers and leaders at the party office in PatnaYou know that hate cannot be countered with hate It can be defeated only with love The Congress is working for uniting the country and spreading love he said adding That is why we have come to Bihar because the DNA of the Congress is in BiharAll Opposition parties have come here and together we are going to defeat the BJP In Karnataka the BJP leaders gave speeches and went everywhere but the result is there for you to see the former Congress chief saidAs soon as the Congress stood united the BJP disappeared in Karnataka I am saying it from this stage that the BJP will be nowhere in Telangana Chhattisgarh Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh and the Congress will win Gandhi claimedAt the same event Kharge urged party workers to set aside their differences and fight the 2024 general elections unitedly asserting that if we win in Bihar we will win the countryThe Samajwadi Party is the only party from Uttar Pradesh attending the meeting with BSP supremo Mayawati not being invited and Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary skipping the conclave due to a family programmeCPI M general secretary Sitaram Yechury CPI general secretary D Raja and CPI ML general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya are among the other leaders attending the meetingWest Bengal Chief Minister Banerjee who arrived here in Thursday evening met Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Yadav former Bihar CM Rabri Devi and Bihar Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav earlierAsked what will happen at the meeting she told reporters outside Tejashwi Yadavs residence on Thursday I cannot say anything now We have come here as we will fight together one to one against the BJP We will fight together like a familyWith inputs from PTI