 "INDIA alliance")
The 14-member coordination and election strategy committee of the INDIA alliance will meet at the residence of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar in New Delhi on Wednesday.
According to reports, seat-sharing discussions are expected to take place, and a joint campaign plan is also on the table.
MP Raghav Chadha said that matters related to seat sharing across states are likely to be taken up at the committee's first meeting, according to a report in The Times of India (TOI).
Chadha, who is a member of the committee, said, "No discussion around seat-sharing has happened within the INDIA alliance so far. Most likely this conversation is likely to commence at the first meeting of the coordination committee of the INDIA Alliance at Sharad Pawar's residence in Delhi on Wednesday."
He added that for such an alliance to be successful, "mahatvakanksha (ambition), matbhed (difference of opinion) and manbhed (difference of mind) need to be sacrificed and set aside. Every single participant of this alliance needs to recognise this."
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Chadha further said that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has joined the alliance to defeat a dictatorial and anti-democratic regime of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
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Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Abhishek Banerjee, who has been called by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for questioning on Wednesday, will skip the meeting. The TMC will not send any representative to the meeting either.
According to reports, leaders of several parties, including the TMC, Janata Dal (United), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Samajwadi Party (SP), and AAP feel that seat sharing is the "central issue" and that the alliance should show urgency in finalising the formula based on which it can be decided.
A senior Opposition leader said, "We are discussing campaigns, social media and media strategy and all. All that comes once the product is ready. For that, seat sharing has to be completed quickly."
The meeting at the residence of Pawar will be attended by K C Venugopal (Congress), T R Baalu (DMK), Hemant Soren (Jharkhand Mukti Morcha), Sanjay Raut (Shiv Sena – Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), Tejashwi Yadav (RJD), Raghav Chadha (AAP), Javed Ali Khan (SP), Lallan Singh (JD-U), D Raja (CPI), Omar Abdullah (National Conference), and Mehbooba Mufti (Peoples Democratic Party).
Five rallies across India
Sources said the campaign committee plans to organise at least five rallies in Chennai, Guwahati, Delhi, Patna, and Nagpur. The committee has also proposed joint rallies in states where Assembly elections are scheduled later this year and in Uttar Pradesh.
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An Opposition leader said, "The idea is to focus on one issue at each rally. The rally in Patna could focus on caste census and social justice. In Chennai, we can talk about attacks on the federal structure. In Guwahati, the idea is to focus on the Northeast, including the situation in Manipur. In Nagpur, leaders can talk about secularism and politics of hatred and polarisation. In Delhi, the major talking points can be the management of the economy, joblessness, and price rise."
