New Delhi: Hours after the Congress on Sunday decided to support Aam Aadmi Party’s campaign against the contentious ordinance that wrested back control of Delhi’s bureaucracy, AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha announced the party’s participation in the meeting of 26 like-minded Opposition parties, which is scheduled to begin from Monday in Bengaluru – the state capital of Congress-ruled Karnataka.
The decision in this regard was taken by the AAP after a meeting of its key political committee on Sunday. While announcing the decision, AAP leader Chadha said, “The AAP’s political affairs committee meeting was held today. Every aspect was discussed in detail and after the meeting was over, I can clearly say this - the ordinance is clearly anti-national.
“From Trinamool Congress to the RJD, JD(U), NCP, Samajwadi Party, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena, all have raised their voice against this anti-national ordinance. We will make every possible effort to defeat it,” said Chadha, who represents AAP in Rajya Sabha where Congress-led Opposition is in majority.
As per Congress party leaders, top leaders of at least 26 political parties would attend the second Opposition unity meeting being convened by the Grand Old party in Bengaluru from July 17 to 18.
While announcing the party’s stand, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal said, “The party has decided to not support the Centre’s ordinance on the control of services in Delhi in the Parliament.”
“As for the ordinance (on control of services in Delhi), our stand is very clear. We are not going to support it,” Venugopal said. The senior party leader further said, “We are consistently opposing the attempts of the Union government to “sabotage federalism”.
We are consistently opposing the attitude of the central government to run the opposition states through the governors. Our stand is very clear, we are not going to support the Delhi ordinance.”
The AAP’s top leaders, including Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann, are set to attend the two-day opposition unity meeting in Bengaluru. Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah and state Congress in charge Randeep Surjewala are looking after the arrangements made for the leaders who are scheduled to attend the second opposition meeting after the one convened by Bihar CM Nitish Kumar in Patna on June 23.
Among the key leaders who are supposed to attend the opposition unity meeting include Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. Sonia Gandhi will reportedly host a dinner on Monday evening for all the leaders.
West Bengal chief minister Mamta Banerjee has already confirmed her presence in the meeting. Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders Uddhav Thackery, Sanjay Raut and Aditya Thackery will also be attending the meet.
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad are scheduled to attend the meeting and they will travel to Bengaluru on Monday for the like-minded parties’ gathering.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has also confirmed his participation. Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren is also attending the meeting. As per party leaders, 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.
Notably, KDMK and MDMK were previously allies of the BJP during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.