New Delhi: Projecting opposition unity ahead of the upcoming Parliament session, the INDIA bloc, excluding the AAP and the DMK, on Monday adopted a five-point resolution that include approaching the Chief Justice of India over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, along with formalising regular consultations among alliance partners.
Other matters of resolutions include demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and seeking an all-party meeting from the government on people-centric issues.
Leaders and representatives of 23 INDIA bloc constituents, including the Congress, the Trinamool Congress (TMC), the Rashtriya Janata Dal, the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar), the Samajwadi Party, and the Shiv Sena (UBT), were present at the meeting held at New Delhi’s Constitution Club.
Addressing reporters after the meeting, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said the alliance had unanimously agreed on five key decisions aimed at strengthening opposition coordination and raising issues that require urgent attention from the government.
The first decision relates to the ongoing controversy surrounding the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and ‘vote chori’ (stealing of votes).
Kharge said the opposition parties would jointly write to the Chief Justice of India, expressing concerns over the exercise and alleging that it could result in election results being inaccurate.
“We have agreed to send a letter to the Chief Justice of India regarding the SIR and what we consider an attempt at ‘vote looting’,” he added.
The alliance further demanded the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan over the consecutive failures of the education ministry in organising NEET examination, and CBSE exam checking.
Kharge said that serious questions had arisen over the conduct of examinations such as NEET and sought accountability from the minister. “It was agreed that Dharmendra Pradhan should resign. He presided over CBSE and NEET, and there have been serious concerns under his watch.”
The third resolution called on the Union government to convene an all-party meeting to discuss people-centric issues, including inflation, unemployment, rising prices and other economic concerns affecting ordinary citizens.
A structured discussion involving all political parties was necessary to address these concerns, Kharge said.
Seeking to improve coordination among member parties, the INDIA bloc also decided to hold formal meetings every two months. Kharge announced that the next meeting would be held in Hyderabad, though the date is yet to be finalised.
In addition, opposition leaders have agreed to continue their daily morning strategy meetings during Parliament sessions.
The meeting comes after several INDIA bloc constituents found themselves on opposing sides in recent state elections and regional political contests, raising questions on their unity. For instance, the Congress and TMC were locked in an electoral fight in West Bengal.
Meanwhile, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) skipped the meeting. The former has said it’s not a part of the opposition grouping any more, while the latter boycotted the gathering following its fallout with the Congress after the Tamil Nadu elections.
With the decision to hold regular consultations, the INDIA bloc signalled its intention to maintain a coordinated opposition platform in the months ahead.
Others to send their representatives were the CPI(M), the CPI, the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference, the CPI(ML), Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, the Indian Union Muslim League, the Kerala Congress (Mani), the MDMK, the VCK, the RSP, the Kerala Congress (Joseph), the All India Forward Bloc, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bharat Adivasi Party (BAP), Peasants and Workers Party of India, and Lok Dal. Independent Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal also attended the event.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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