'Not Aware': Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee To Skip I.N.D.I.A. Bloc's Dec 6 Meeting In Delhi

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee cited prior commitments making her unavailable for the opposition I.N.D.I.A. bloc meeting on December 6, as leaders plan to strategise for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

File Photo: West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during opposition parties' meet, in Bengaluru in July.

Source : PTI

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed her inability to attend the upcoming meeting of the opposition I.N.D.I.A. bloc in Delhi on December 6, citing prior engagements in North Bengal. The meeting, reportedly scheduled at the residence of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, aims to formulate a strategy for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The meeting assumed significance after the Congress party's poor show in the Hindi heartland states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh.

Banerjee, addressing reporters outside Raj Bhawan, conveyed her lack of awareness about the meeting date and suggested that with advance notice, she could have rearranged her schedule. She said, "I will be visiting North Bengal from December 6 to December 11. I was not aware of the meeting date on December 6. Had I known about the meeting date beforehand, then I could have rescheduled my visit", as quoted by news agency PTI.

The participation of any other leader from the Trinamool Congress (TMC) at the meeting remains uncertain at this point. Banerjee, accompanied by her nephew and TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, has attended previous meetings of the I.N.D.I.A. opposition bloc.

I.N.D.I.A. Bloc Meeting On Dec 6 For 2024 Lok Sabha Election

Leaders of the opposition I.N.D.I.A. bloc are slated to convene at Kharge's residence to discuss and finalise their plan to collectively confront the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the lead-up to the polls, PTI reported sources as saying. The meeting is expected to address crucial aspects of strategy as the opposition gears up for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Meanwhile, PTI sources said that the Congress was awaiting the results of assembly elections in five states—Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Mizoram—before finalising the opposition bloc's strategy and seat-sharing arrangement for the general elections.

The update on the Opposition meeting came as the BJP formed the government in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh, while the Congress saw a sliver lining with its win in Telangana.

With the election outcomes clear, the discussions on seat-sharing between regional outfits are anticipated to gain momentum. The I.N.D.I.A. bloc, comprising at least 26 parties, aims to present a united front against the BJP in the upcoming elections.