Road to 2024: BJP reaches out to allies amid Opposition's unity push

The BJP and the Congress understand that coalitions and alliances are not just about numbers but have symbolic value

Opposition parties that boycotted Sunday’s inauguration of the new Parliament building will meet in Patna on June 12 to discuss unity for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. It is a challenging task, as evident from the Trinamool Congress poaching Congress’ lone Bengal legislator, Bayron Biswas, on Monday, bringing back the latter to zero seats in the 294-member Bengal assembly.

If 21 Opposition parties boycotted Sunday’s ceremony, the support the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) received from 13 affiliates of the much-diminished National Democratic Alliance (NDA), along with from half a dozen not aligned to either camp, who attended the function, reawakened