CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) president M K Stalin will attend the second Opposition unity meeting being convened by Congress in Bengaluru on July 17-18, said state Sports Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin.
“It is happening on July 17. Our CM is going to attend. Definitely, it will be a very positive meeting. Our CM is going to participate”, Udhayanidhi Stalin said.
According to sources, eight new parties have extended their support to the Opposition efforts to present a united front against the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
“After last month’s mega Opposition meet in Bihar’s Patna, top leaders of as many as 24 political parties will be attending the second meeting which is going to take place in Bengaluru”, sources said.
“Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK), Kongu Desa Makkal Katchi (KDMK), Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), All India Forward Bloc, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), Kerala Congress (Joseph), and Kerala Congress (Mani) are among the new political parties that will be joining the meeting”, they said.
Congress parliamentary party chairperson Sonia Gandhi will also attend the Opposition meeting. Notably, KDMK and MDMK were previously allies of the BJP during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
At that meeting, Opposition parties had resolved to take on the BJP unitedly in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. At a joint press conference after the Patna meeting, opposition parties had said they would fight the polls on a common agenda and state-wise strategy, setting aside their differences with a flexible approach.
The first Opposition unity meeting, attended by more than 15 parties was held in Patna on June 23, and it was convened by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Leaders including AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin were among those who attended the meeting. (ANI)