SP, BSP stay away from anti-BJP bloc
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief N Chandrababu Naidu (68) was the master of ceremony as leaders of 21 political parties turned up in the Parliament House Annexe to give a push to a grand alliance against the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
Aam Aadmi Party became the latest entrant to join the exercise for formation of a mega coalition, with its chief Arvind Kejriwal turning up along with party MPs Sanjay Singh and Bhagwant Mann. The Congress has reservations on any tie-up with the AAP but Kejriwal turned up on other parties' request.
Missing however, were the big two from Uttar Pradesh – the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, though Ajit Singh of the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), their alliance partner in Uttar Pradesh, attended.
Naidu had postponed an earlier meeting in November at the insistence of BSP supremo Mayawati who wanted it to be held only after the Assembly elections.
On behalf of all parties, an appointment has been sought with President Ramnath Kovind on Tuesday to express concern over the Modi government destroying the Constitution, institutions like the RBI, the CBI and the Election Commission and seek his intervention as the head of the nation, Naidu told reporters after a 3-hour long meeting.
He said an understanding was reached that the parties shall keep aside their differences at the state level and work unitedly inside and outside Parliament for a "broader unity" in the national interest. Whether the forum being built to oust the BJP from power at the Centre will be called "Mahagathbandhan" (grand alliance) or by any other name is not yet decided, he said. Uttar Pradesh is the state that sends the highest number of 80 members to the Lok Sabha and hence absence of Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav is expected to weaken the front against the BJP, though Mayawati has said her doors are open for a national alliance for 2019. Both are cut up with the Congress which had rejected their demand for seat sharing in the current round of Assembly elections. Dr Farooq Abdullah, however, said "they are 100% with us and will join after the assembly election results are out on Tuesday." In reply to a question, Naidu said they have not yet reached a stage of drawing up a common minimum programme (CMP) to counter the BJP propaganda machinery, but the consensus was to wait for the results of the assembly elections in five states on Tuesday and meet again, if possible before month end, with each party drawing up points for the agenda. This is also for the first time that the Trinamul Congress and its arch rival CPM turned up at the meeting, burying their hatchet at the state level. CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechuri, however, ruled out any alliance or even an understanding with Trinamul in Bengal. The meeting was winding up when Mamata Banerjee brought the news of resignation of RBI governor Urjit Patel. In the ensuing discussion, all agreed that a situation was created in which he was forces to quit, Naidu said, pointing out that the nation is in crisis.