Presidential Polls: Mamata Reaches Out To Oppn CMs, Calls For Meeting In Delhi On June 15

CM Mamata Banerjee will be on a three-day visit to the national capital this month between June 14 and 16.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee

New Delhi: With the presidential elections just a month away, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday wrote to 22 Opposition chief ministers and leaders to participate in a meeting in Delhi on June 15, news agency ANI reported. According to the report, the meeting will be held in a bid to form a “strong and effective opposition against divisive forces.”

As per an IANS report, CM Mamata Banerjee will be on a three-day visit to the national capital this month between June 14 and 16.

According to sources in the West Bengal cabinet, Banerjee’s visit will be basically a preparatory mission so that the chief minister can take a lead role to ensure that a unanimous Opposition candidate is fielded against BJP's candidate.

CM Banerjee has invited the opposition leaders to participate in the joint meeting at Constitution Club in Delhi, ANI reported.

The letter has been written to Arvind Kejriwal, Chief Minister, Delhi; Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister, Kerela; Naveen Patnaik, Chief Minister, Odisha; Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao, Chief Minister, Telangana; MK Stalin, Chief Minister, Tamil Nadu; Uddhav Thackeray, Chief Minister, Maharashtra; Hemant Soren, Chief Minister, Jharkhand; Bhagwant Singh Mann, Chief Minister, Punjab; Sonia Gandhi, President, INC; Lalu Prasad Yadav, President, RJD; Sitaram Yechury, General Secretary, CPIM; Akhilesh Yadav, President, Samajwadi Party; Sharad Pawar, President, NCP; Jayant Chaudhary, National President, RLD; HD Kumaraswamy, former CM of Karnataka; HD Deve Gowda, former PM of India; Farooq Abdullah, President, JKNC; Mehbooba Mufti, President, PDP, among others.

According to the report, the visit of Banerjee is to consider some names which can be proposed as a unanimous opposition candidate.

“There might be discussion on whether there is a possibility for the opposition parties to announce the name of their candidate before BJP announces their nominee,” IANS quoted a senior member of West Bengal cabinet as saying.

"In her two- day New Delhi tour she is expected to hold meetings with leaders of other anti-BJP forces,” he added.

Notably, the presidential elections is scheduled to be held on July 18 and the counting will take place on July 21.