Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar (file photo).
– Photo: Amar Ujala
Expansion
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s party Janata Dal United (JDU) meeting in Patna on Sunday indicated that the much-awaited meeting of anti-BJP parties may be held here on June 12.
Although none of the senior JDU functionaries officially confirmed or denied this, but many people present in the meeting said on the condition of anonymity that this disclosure was made by the Chief Minister himself.
JD(U) top leader Nitish Kumar has been pitching for “opposition unity” ever since he parted ways with the BJP in August last year. He had alleged that the BJP was trying to create a rift in his party and belittle him.
Nitish Kumar, who is leading the ruling “Mahagathbandhan” in Bihar, has met anti-BJP leaders like Arvind Kejriwal, Mamta Banerjee, Akhilesh Yadav regarding the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. JDU, RJD, Congress and Left parties and some other parties are the constituents of the Grand Alliance.
In fact, the idea of holding a meeting of opposition leaders in Patna was given by Mamata Banerjee. As part of the “opposition unity” campaign, Nitish Kumar has held talks not only with Congress allies like Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar but also with his opponents like Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao.
All eyes will now be on which parties agree to be represented at the meeting, given the Congress’ mistrust of Kejriwal and KCR and Mamata Banerjee’s famous rivalry with the Left.