Page 26 - Opposition

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

Top leaders of 26 opposition parties are expected to attend the two-day brainstorming session in Bengaluru from Monday where they are likely to start work on a common minimum programme and announce a joint agitational plan to take on the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. According to sources, the leaders are likely to hold discussions on issuing a joint declaration and move forward on their proposal of putting up common opposition candidates in a majority of the Lok Sabha seats. The agenda for the talks would be finalised during discussions before a dinner meeting on Monday evening, they said. There is a proposal to set up a subcommittee for drafting a common minimum programme and communication points for the Opposition alliance for the 2024 general elections, the sources said. Besides, the sources said, the plan is also to set up a subcommittee for chalking out the joint programme of parties that includes rallies, conventions and agitations. A plan to discuss the process for decid

Assam CM blames Miyas' for soaring vegetable prices; opposition slams

Spiralling vegetable prices in Assam's largest city Guwahati has triggered a war of words between political opponents, with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's blaming Miyas' for the escalating rates drawing sharp reactions from opposition parties. While AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal said Miyas' have been hurt' by the CM's comment, Congress and other opposition parties sniffed a collusion between the BJP and the AIUDF in communal politics' ahead of next year's Lok Sabha elections. Sarma, while responding to reporters' questions on high price of veggies in Guwahati, had said, "Vegetables are not priced so high in villages. Here the Miya vendors charge us more. Had it been Assamese vendors selling vegetables, they wouldn't have fleeced their own people." "I will clear all the footpaths of Guwahati and I urge our Assamese people to come forward and start their businesses," he added. Bengali-speaking Muslims are generally referred to as Miyas' in the state, with the community largely ..

Mamata to skip oppn dinner on Mon, to take part in discussion on Tue

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will not be attending an opposition dinner on July 17 as she has to follow post-surgery protocols, but will be part of the daylong meeting of the parties on July 18, sources in her Trinamool Congress (TMC) said on Saturday. Banerjee underwent a microsurgery on her left knee at the state-run SSKM hospital in Kolkata on Thursday. The TMC chief suffered a ligament injury on her left knee during the emergency landing of her helicopter at the Sevoke Airbase in north Bengal on June 27. "While her doctors have given her the permission to fly and attend the opposition summit, she has been advised rest. So she will skip the dinner, but will attend the daylong meeting on July 18," a source in the TMC said. A dinner for the opposition parties has been planned by Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in Bengaluru on July 17. TMC's national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee and Rajya Sabha MP Derek O'Brien will be accompanying the West Bengal chief .

Oppn can't decide its leader, Modi's victory in 2024 is certain: CM Shinde

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Saturday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi would certainly win the 2024 general election as the opposition has failed to decide on a leader. Speaking at 'Shasan Aplya Dari' (government at your doorstep) program, he also said that NCP leader Ajit Pawar joining the Shiv Sena-BJP government in the state will make it "faster". We have 200 MLAs and MPs with us (in Maharashtra). There will be no discrimination. Injustice will not be done to anyone," Shinde said. Even though opposition leaders are trying to come together to defeat Modi in the next Lok Sabha elections, they could not decide on a leader, he said, adding, "This has made PM Modi's victory certain." Ajit Pawar too has reposed faith in Modi's leadership now, Shinde said, adding that the prime minister is receiving praise wherever he goes. Modi got the chance to address the US Congress twice and recently France's highest honour was conferred on him, the Shiv Sena leader said. "With .

24 parties to attend 2nd Oppn Unity meet in Bengaluru on July 17-18

According to sources, eight new parties have extended their support to the Opposition parties' efforts to present a united front against BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls

Oppn walk out from Parl panel meet after demand to discuss Manipur denied

Opposition members of the parliamentary standing committee on Home walked out of a meeting on Thursday after their demand to discuss the situation in Manipur was denied by the panel chief, sources said. At the meeting to discuss prison reforms in Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, TMC's Derek O'Brien, and Congress' Digvijaya Singh and Pradip Bhattacharya submitted a joint letter to panel chairman Brijlal, saying as committee members they cannot ignore the situation in Manipur, the sources said. The letter signed by all three MPs said that as members of the Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs, it is their moral and constitutional responsibility to discuss this matter with utmost urgency and the requited sincerity. "Having been a senior police officer yourself, you understand the gravity of the situation in the state. Manipur needs healing and an end to the violence. We as elected representatives cannot look away," they said. They further said t

Prachanda's remark on India stirs up storm in Nepal, Oppn demands resign

Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda's stunning remarks that an Indian businessman settled here "once made efforts" to make him the premier has stirred up a storm in the Himalayan Nation with the Opposition demanding his resignation. Prachanda also said that Sardar Pritam Singh, a pioneer trucking entrepreneur in Nepal, played a special and historic role in enhancing Nepal-India relations. Prachanda made these remarks on Monday while addressing a function to launch the book, Roads to the Valley: The Legacy of Sardar Pritam Singh in Nepal' He (Singh) had once made efforts to make me the prime minister, Prachanda said. He travelled to Delhi several times and held multiple rounds of talks with political leaders in Kathmandu to make me the prime minister, the Prime Minister said. Prachanda also said that Singh has played a special and historic role in enhancing Nepal-India relations. The remarks have stirred up a storm and drawn criticism from several quarters. The main

Oppn walks out from Par panel meet after demand to discuss Manipur denied

Opposition members of the parliamentary standing committee on Home walked out of a meeting on Thursday after their demand to discuss the situation in Manipur was denied by the panel chief, sources said. At the meeting to discuss prison reforms in states, TMC's Derek O'Brien, and Congress' Digvijaya Singh and Pradip Bhattacharya submitted letters to panel chairman Brijlal, saying as committee members they cannot ignore the situation in Manipur, the sources said. Earlier too, O'Brien and Singh had written to Brijlal urging him to hold a meeting to discuss the situation in Manipur. The chairperson had informed both MPs separately the inability to hold meetings urgently on the Manipur situation, as three meetings on prison reforms have been scheduled for July. A total of seven members, including the chairman, attended the meeting. Nearly 120 people have died and more than 3,000 injured in the ethnic violence in Manipur since May 3.

All NCP workers support Sharad Pawar, upset on Ajit's move: LoP Awhad

"All NCP workers are with Pawar saheb (Sharad Pawar). That is why workers are angry with what Ajit Pawar did. That is why his poster has been removed from the party office," Jitendra Awhad said

Central leadership will decide Karnataka Leader of Opposition: Yediyurappa

"We have not taken any decision so far, it is left to the central leadership, they will take the decision", the senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader said

Next Opposition meet to be held on July 17-18 in Bengaluru, says Congress

In the first Opposition meeting in Patna on June 23, over 32 leaders of Opposition parties resolved to take on the BJP unitedly in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections

Next Opposition meet of parties to be held in Bengaluru on July 17-18: Cong

The Congress announced on Monday that the next meeting of opposition parties will be held in Bengaluru on July 17 and 18. Congress general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal made the announcement on Twitter and said "we are steadfast in our unwavering resolve to defeat the fascist and undemocratic forces". In a tweet, Venugopal said, "After a hugely successful all-opposition meeting in Patna, we will be holding the next meeting in Bengaluru on 17 and 18 July, 2023. We are steadfast in our unwavering resolve to defeat the fascist and undemocratic forces and present a bold vision to take the country forward." Earlier, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar had said the next opposition meet will be held in Bengaluru on July 13-14. Those dates were said to be clashing with the Assembly sessions in a few states. The first such meeting of opposition parties was held in Bihar's Patna on June 23.

'Dirty tricks': Opposition hits back at BJP after NCP split in Maharashtra

Ajit Pawar's decision to abandon his uncle Sharad Pawar and join the BJP prompted many Opposition leaders to call the NCP veteran

BJP yet to elect Oppn leader, is most indisciplined party: CM Siddaramaiah

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday said the BJP yet to elect the leader of opposition in the Legislative Assembly shows there is groupism in that outfit and dubbed it as the "most indisciplined" political party. "It clearly shows that there is groupism among them," he told reporters in response to a question. The BJP calls itself as a disciplined party but it's the "most indisciplined party", Siddaramaiah alleged. The budget session of the Karnataka Legislature began on Monday with the BJP yet to elect its leader in the lower House. The BJP president J P Nadda has appointed Union minister Mansukh Mandaviya and party general secretary Vinod Tawde as central observers for the election. BJP chief spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Anil Baluni said the two central leaders will be visiting the state to oversee the election of the party's leader in the state assembly by its MLAs. Following its loss to the Congress in the state polls, the BJP is yet to elect its leader in the

BJP to elect 'Leader of Opposition' in Karnataka Assembly: Anil Baluni

Karnataka Legislative Assembly's Budget session will begin on Monday and it is expected that the Opposition will attack the government on the alleged delay in the implementation of the five guarantees

New Leader of Oppn in K'taka Assembly will be known by Sunday: BJP Leader

Former Karnataka Chief Minister and senior BJP leader Basavaraj Bommai said it will be known by Sunday as to who will be the Leader of Opposition in the State Legislative Assembly. According to party sources, BJP's legislature party meeting is likely to take place on Sunday to elect its leader, who will also be the Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, ahead of the legislature session starting from July 3. "It will be known surely tomorrow evening," Bommai told reporters in Chikkamagaluru on Saturday, in response to a question as to who will be the Leader of Opposition. According to BJP sources, the party national general secretary in-charge of Karnataka Arun Singh, has already gathered opinions of the newly elected legislators, and the new leader is likely to be chosen based on it and the outcome of consultations with the BJP's national leadership. Bommai and senior leader and former Union Minister Basanagouda Patil Yatnal are said to be the frontrunners for the post. Questions w

Next Oppn meeting in Bengaluru, not Shimla on July 13-14: Sharad Pawar

A total of 32 leaders from various parties attended the first meeting hosted by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar at his residence in Patna

Leaders who attended oppn meet involved in scams worth Rs 20 trn: Shah

Union Home Minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah on Thursday accused opposition leaders, who had attended the June 23 meeting in Patna, of being involved in scams worth over Rs 20 lakh crore. Taking on Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who organised the meeting, Shah said the people of the state will give a befitting reply to corrupt leaders in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The Union home minister was addressing a mega rally at Lakhisarai in Munger parliamentary constituency, organised by his party BJP. Bihar has always raised its voice against corruption. Opposition leaders who attended the June 23 meeting in Patna are involved in scams worth over Rs 20 lakh croreBihar will give a befitting reply to corrupt leaders in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Shah said. In a reference to Kumar who dumped the BJP last year to form the 'Mahagathbandhan' government in the state, Shah said leaders who ditched the National Democratic Alliance must be punished. Shah also questioned the chief minister's

Shah to address rally in Bihar today, days after oppn meeting in Patna

The minister further said that Amit Shah will reach Patna where party leaders will welcome him at the airport then he will go to Lakhisarai by Chopper

Oppn leaders' Patna meeting a photo session, says BJP Chief JP Nadda

BJP national president J P Nadda on Monday hit out at the opposition parties in the country by terming their recent meeting in Patna as a "photo session" and said that if people wanted development instead of dynastic, appeasement and vote bank politics, they should support his party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Nadda also lashed out at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his speech in the United Kingdom in March this year, saying he went to the country which had ruled over India for over 200 years and asked them to save democracy here while forgetting that his grandmother -- Indira Gandhi -- had jailed around 1.88 lakh people during emergency. "Democracy is safe here. You save yourself," Nadda said while speaking at a public meeting here on the occasion of the Narendra Modi government completing nine years at the Centre. Regarding the opposition leaders' meeting in Patna last week, the BJP national president said, "They were there for a photo session. Congratulations to them." A