Rahul Gandhi determined for Opposition unity
Before leaving for the USA, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi requested senior party leaders not to make any statement which may create hurdles in the Opposition unity efforts. He specifically requested party president Mallikarjun Kharge to ensure that party leaders in states avoid making statements hurting efforts to achieve Opposition unity.
Rahul Gandhi said at a meeting of senior party leaders at Kharge's residence that it did not matter if the Congress contested 10 seats more or less. “The objective is to defeat the BJP.” The Congress, at its Raipur plenary, had vowed to go all out to mobilise like-minded secular forces to defeat the BJP.
Rahul
Gandhi is reported to have telephoned Bihar Chief Minister
Nitish Kumar in the midst of his US tour to postpone the Opposition
conclave from June 12 to June 23 as he would not be able to
make it. It is learnt that Kharge also talked to Nitish Kumar to
confirm his presence at the Patna conclave on June 23. It
may be mentioned here that the Congress had authorized Nitish Kumar
to take the initiative to bring all like-minded parties together in
September 2022 when he called on them along with Lalu Prasad Yadav. Rahul
Gandhi is likely to return to India around June 17 and attend the
Opposition conclave at Patna. Rahul
Gandhi, during his interactions with the academics, tech experts and
Indian diaspora that the 2024 General Elections is likely to see a
united opposition against the BJP and that its results will come as a
surprise. Rahul Gandhi also said at a couple of interactions
that the Congress Party defeated the false “India Shining moment”
in 2004 Lok Sabha polls and every pollster was surprised. The BJP
under Modi will equally be surprised in 2024.
