'INDIA bloc crucial for Congress, but...', Kharge tells Nitish Kumar, say sources

 'INDIA bloc crucial for Congress, but...', Kharge tells Nitish Kumar, say sources

• Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge told Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar that the Congress considered the INDIA bloc to be crucial but stated that it would focus on the Opposition alliance's strategy and joint rallies after the elections in five states were over, sources told LAKSHY DREAM FOUNDATION GLOBAL NEWS

As Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar blamed the Congress for the INDIA bloc losing the momentum it had gained initially, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge spoke to him over the phone and told him that the Opposition alliance was crucial for his party, sources told indiatoday.in. However, Mallikarjun Kharge said the Congress was concentrating on the Assembly polls in five states right now and will focus on the INDIA bloc's agenda and joint rallies after the state elections are over, they added.

 

Mallikarjun Kharge told Nitish Kumar that the Congress was focusing on assembly polls in Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Mizoram, where the party has high stakes, according to sources.

On November 2, Nitish Kumar on Thursday blamed the Congress' preoccupation with assembly polls in five states for the INDIA bloc's inability to build on the momentum it had gained in recent months.

The JD(U) leader made the remark at a rally in Patna by the Communist Party of India (CPI), which was evocatively themed 'Bhaajpa hataao, desh bachao' (dislodge the BJP from power, save the country).

"But, of late, there has not been much progress on that front. The Congress party seems to be more interested in the five assembly polls. In the INDIA coalition, all of us agreed to assign Congress the leading role. But it appears they will respond and call the next meeting only after they are through with the ongoing elections," said Nitish Kumar.

The JD(U) leader had played a pivotal role in hosting the first meeting of Opposition leaders in June in Patna, setting the tone for the formation of the INDIA bloc. Two other meetings of Opposition leaders were held in Bengaluru in July and in Mumbai between August and September.

The alliance has been formed to take on the BJP-led NDA in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.