Sharad Pawar, the leader of the Nationalist Congress Party, praised the Congress party for its resounding win in the Karnataka assembly elections and for clearing the way for the opposition to take on the BJP. Speaking to news agency ANI on Sunday, he said that the Karnataka incident is evidence that the BJP could be defeated in other states if like-minded parties banded together.
We have a message from Karnataka, he added. The government has provided the opposition with a route. If a single party, like the Congress in Karnataka, can demonstrate its strength against the BJP, then similar-minded parties should band together in other states to fight the BJP.
The head of the Communist Party of India (CPI), D Raja, visited Pawar at his home in Mumbai the day after the BJP lost the election in Karnataka. They spoke about alternatives to the BJP.
According to news source PTI, Pawar addressed the media after the meeting and unveiled a “common minimum programme” (CMP) to promote opposition unity. He said, “We are beginning this process of working on both fronts (developing a plan similar to Karnataka and the CMP).”
Nitish Kumar, the chief minister of Bihar, met Pawar in Mumbai on Thursday as part of attempts to fortify the opposition’s cohesion before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Tejashwi Yadav, who serves as Kumar’s deputy, also went. There is “nothing more delightful than Pawar being the face of the opposition alliance,” according to Kumar, who added that they are working hard to create a broader coalition.
“People have rejected ‘Modi hai to mumkin hai,” Pawar, who was at the center of the Maharashtra conflict, had tweeted after the BJP’s crushing defeat in Karnataka, which dropped its seat share to 66. Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra was lauded by the seasoned politician as well.
Siddaramaiah is said to be the front-runner, followed by state party president DK Shivakumar, as the next chief minister, according to conjecture. Congress, which won handily with 135 seats in the 224-member assembly, is now in the process of choosing the next chief minister.