Sharad Pawar, the leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), stated that the “Manipur issue will also be discussed” during the gathering of opposition leaders set for friday morning in Patna, Bihar.
Pawar continued by saying that “they are meeting to discuss some important issues of the country and decide the future course of action.” She was accompanied by her daughter Supriya Sule. In addition, it was seen that MP Sanjay Raut and former chief minister of Maharashtra Uddhav Thackeray were travelling to Patna, Bihar, to attend a gathering of opposition leaders. Leaders of several opposition parties already had arrived in Patna on thursday ahead of their crucial meeting which is aimed at forging unity for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls even as they face challenges in terms of turf wars in states.
The meeting has been called by Bihar Chief Minister and Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar and will be attended by leaders of parties opposed to the BJP. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, and PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti were among the leaders who reached Patna ahead of the meeting.
On her arrival in Patna, Mamata Banerjee called on Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) patriarch and former Bihar CM Lalu Yadav and his son and state Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav. “It was wonderful to meet Lalu Prasad Yadav ji. He is a senior leader. Unfortunately, he was in jail for so many days and then was hospitalized for a long time. It was good to see him. I cannot share the details of the meeting right now. All I can say is that we are here to fight collectively, like a family.” Mamata Banerjee met Nitish Kumar in Patna Circuit House after her meeting with RJD Supremo. Mann and Kejriwal also spoke with Nitish Kumar. Due to a planned family programme, RLD chairman Jayant Chaudhary claimed he will be able to attend the meeting.