Sonia Gandhi meets top Opposition leaders, plans larger unity & Parliament strategy

Opposition parties have been protesting the suspension of 12 Rajya Sabha MPs and are holding protests, seeking the revocation of their suspensions

In what is seen as a message to Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday evening held discussions with top leaders, including Sharad Pawar, Farooq Abdullah and Sitaram Yechury, on strengthening the larger Opposition unity and intensifying the fight in the Parliament against the Narendra Modi government.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and his Tamil Nadu counterpart M K Stalin were invited but they could not attend it and deputed Sanjay Raut and T R Baalu for the meeting, which also discussed the Opposition protest against suspension of 12 Rajya Sabha MPs and requested the intervention of NCP supremo Sharad Pawar in finding a resolution.

Sources said Pawar along with Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge will meet Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu on Wednesday.

Also Read | Opposition protests rock Rajya Sabha over issue of suspended MPs

This was the first round of meeting as Sonia is slated to meet other Opposition leaders in the coming days before the Parliament Session ends on December 23, sources said.

For the Congress, sources said, the meeting is a "signal and message" to Trinamool Congress, which has been trying to "overthrow" the party from its pole position in the Opposition. Mamata, during her visit to Mumbai, had met Pawar and commented that the Congress-led UPA is not in existence.

Sources said CPI(M) General Secretary Yechury advised that there should be more such meetings and it should not be on a large-scale as the one held on August 20 when all parties were present. He cautioned that Trinamool and Mamata's absence in such a meeting could lead to a portrayal of a break in Opposition ranks.

At the August 20 meeting chaired by Sonia, it was decided that all Opposition leaders would meet again before the Winter Session but Mamata's aggressive political positioning against the Congress has thwarted any joint Opposition meetings.

During the meeting, sources said, the leaders highlighted the need for a united fight by the Opposition inside and outside Parliament, especially with Assembly elections to five states round the corner.

Sources said the issue of suspension of MPs came up for discussion and the leaders felt that it was strange that there was no attempt at resolving the impasse. Usually, sources said, the Rajya Sabha Chairman takes the initiative to clear the logjam by calling a meeting of leaders from both the sides.

When Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, who attended the meeting, was asked to meet Naidu, he told the leaders that he had met the latter several times. At this, sources said, Sonia and others requested Pawar to intervene and meet Naidu along with Kharge.

Sources said Sonia is likely to meet another group of leaders in a day or two.

"It was a meeting about the country. We talked about how we can work together and move forward and how we can take out the country from this difficulty. A good agreement has been formed among us," National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah told reporters after the meeting.

Shiv Sena's Raut said the main agenda was Opposition unity in states and there would be more meetings. DMK's Baalu said they were working out a political strategy.

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