The Congress on Monday said that the next Opposition meeting will be held in Bengaluru on July 17 and 18. The meeting was scheduled to be held in Bengaluru on July 12-13 but was deferred following the NCP fiasco in Maharashtra.
Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal, Organisation, announced, “After a hugely successful All-Opposition meeting in Patna, we will be holding the next meeting in Bengaluru on 17 and 18 July, 2023.”
Opposition leaders had earlier planned to hold the meeting in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, but shifted the venue to Bengaluru last week. There were indications till today morning that the meeting in Bengaluru will only take place after the Monsoon Session of Parliament concludes on August 11.
“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 today.
The first joint meeting which was held in Patna saw the presence of as many as 32 leaders from 15 parties, including AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, among others.
The announcement comes after Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar’s nephew Ajit Pawar was sworn-in as the deputy Chief Minister on Sunday, following his rebellion. The Congress party asserted that Ajit’s move won’t impact Opposition unity.
Calling it a “NCP’s issue”, Venugopal had told news agency ANI that Ajit Pawar’s rebellion is “not going to affect opposition unity”.
“PM Modi made a big allegation recently against the NCP leaders for corruption and now we saw this drama. It is a clear sponsored game of ED and their agencies. It will not affect MVA. We will fight against BJP more aggressively. This is not going to affect opposition unity, this is NCP’s issue,” he said.
“Sharad Pawar is the tallest leader of the party and he will be able to handle the situation. Some leaders changing the party does not mean that the supporters of the party and other members will go with them,” he had added.