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4 non-BJP CMs visit Kejriwal's residence, hold talks ahead of NITI meet

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerejee and her Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka counterparts -- Chandrababu Naidu, Pinarayi Vijayan and H D Kumaraswamy -- visited Kejriwal's residence

Mamata Banerjee

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee listens to the speech of State Governor Keshari nath Tripathy (not seen) on the first day of West Bengal Assembly Budget Session, in Kolkata (Photo: PTI)

Press Trust of India New Delhi

Four non-BJP chief ministers on Saturday visited their Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal's residence to meet his family members amid his sit-in protest at the L-G's office along with his three cabinet colleagues.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerejee and her Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka counterparts -- Chandrababu Naidu, Pinarayi Vijayan and H D Kumaraswamy -- visited Kejriwal's residence on Saturday evening.

They are in Delhi to attend NITI Aayog meeting to be held on Sunday.  The four CMs, who had earlier demanded that the Centre provide special financial aid to their states, also held discussions.

Naidu's Telugu Desam Party had in March pulled out of the NDA government after it refused to grant special status to Andhra Pradesh.

The meeting comes at a time when regional parties are mulling the idea of forging a united front to take on the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

The four CMs also sought Lt Governor Anil Baijal's permission to meet him to submit a representation on Kejriwal's sit-in at the L-G office.

Kejriwal, accompanied by his deputy Manish Sisodia and ministers Satyendar Jain and Gopal Rai, have stayed put at the LG office, demanding that Baijal direct IAS officers to end what AAP described as their "strike" and approve doorstep ration delivery scheme.

Meanwhile, APP leader Raghav Chadha has alleged that Baijal has denied permission to Banerjee for meeting Kejriwal. 

Kejriwal alleged that the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) had directed Baijal to refuse permission to Banerjee.

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First Published: Jun 16 2018 | 10:23 PM IST

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