Sonia Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi arrive at Bengaluru ahead of joint Oppn meeting

Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, and Rahul Gandhi arrived in Bengaluru for a two-day meeting of opposition parties.

Published on: Jul 17, 2023, 16:04:33 IST

ANIPosted by Yamini C S

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Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, and party leader Rahul Gandhi arrived in Bengaluru to take part in the two-day meeting of opposition parties.

Mallikarjun Kharge and Sonia Gandhi being welcomed by Karnataka DCM DK Shivakumar upon their arrival at HAL airport ahead of the united opposition meeting in Bengaluru on Monday. (PTI)

Meanwhile, they were received by Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and other senior leaders of the party.

Earlier, Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) leader Jayant Singh and Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) general secretary Vaiko also arrived at Bengaluru airport.

READ | 'Oppn parties have come together to fight authoritarianism…': CM Siddaramaiah's welcome message

Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav said, "...2/3rd of the population is going to defeat BJP. I hope that the people of the country will give BJP a massive defeat...I am receiving inputs from all corners of the country that the BJP will be wiped out..."

Congress has rallied support from 26 parties for the second opposition unity meeting to take on the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The first opposition unity meeting was held in Patna last month.

The formal opposition meeting will take place on Tuesday. The meeting will start at about 11 am and will continue till 4 pm.

The opposition parties are seeking to put up a united front against the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

READ | Opposition has never considered JDS a part of them, says former Karnataka CM Kumaraswamy

An informal meeting is scheduled at 6 pm after which there will be dinner at 8 pm.

According to sources, the name of the opposition alliance will be decided, and the common minimum programme may also be discussed in the Bengaluru meeting.

Several committees are expected to be formed which will hold meetings to deliberate on various issues pertaining to the alliance. Various groups and sub-groups may also be formed.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Yamini C S
Yamini CS is a Senior Content Producer at Hindustan Times with nearly six years of experience in digital journalism. She is part of the India News desk, where she works on a wide range of stories cutting across civic issues, city-based developments, politics, governance, public policy, breaking news, trending topics, and international affairs that have an impact on India. Her role involves tracking fast-moving developments, verifying information from official and on-ground sources, and presenting news in a clear, accessible format for a digital-first audience. A significant part of her work includes handling live blogs during major news events, such as elections, court verdicts, political developments, civic disruptions, protests, weather-related alerts, and unfolding national or international incidents. Through live coverage, she focuses on timely updates to help readers follow complex stories as they evolve. Before moving to the broader India News desk, Yamini was associated with the Bengaluru desk at Hindustan Times, where she extensively covered urban governance, infrastructure, traffic and transport issues, weather events, public grievances, and civic administration in the city. This experience strengthened her grounding in city reporting and sharpened her focus on citizen-centric journalism. She began her career as a correspondent with Reuters after completing a postgraduate diploma in journalism from the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media. Her early training instilled a strong emphasis on accuracy, sourcing, and news ethics, which continue to shape her reporting style. Outside of work, Yamini enjoys reading across genres, listening to music, and spending time with her family, which help her maintain balance in a fast-paced newsroom environment.Read More

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