Over 50 Party Leaders Join Karnataka Chief Minister For Dinner Meeting

Leaders from 26 political parties across India will gather in Bengaluru, Karnataka, on Tuesday (18 July) to hold a second conclave of the opposition.

The purpose of this meeting once again is to form an electoral alliance to challenge the ruling BJP-led NDA in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

During the previous meeting of the opposition parties in Patna, Bihar, leaders from 15 parties were present. That meeting served as a precursor to the upcoming conclave in Bengaluru.

In preparation for the meeting, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah hosted a dinner for the leaders of the opposition parties. Over 50 leaders from various parties attended this gathering on Monday (17 July), as reported by The Hindu.

Prominent leaders who attended the dinner meeting included AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, former AICC presidents Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his deputy Tejashvi Yadav, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, former chief ministers Lalu Prasad Yadav, Uddhav Thackeray, Mehbooba Mufti, Omar Abdullah, and Akhilesh Yadav, as well as CPI general secretary D Raja.

Although Nationalist Congress Party supremo Sharad Pawar did not attend the dinner meeting, it is expected that the veteran leader will be present on Tuesday.

Earlier in the day, AICC general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal expressed that the unity of non-NDA parties has the potential to be a "game-changer" in the Indian political scenario.