 "PM Modi")
In another indication that several constituents of the Opposition alliance were upset with the Congress for its indifference towards them since September, several leaders of the smaller parties conveyed their inability to attend Wednesday’s meeting of the INDIA bloc convened by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.
The Congress deferred the meeting of the top leaders of the alliance to the third week of December.
Another meeting called by the Congress president at his residence here on Wednesday with the floor leaders of the INDIA constituents in Parliament will, however, go ahead according to its schedule to formulate the opposition strategy for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
On Monday, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee cited prior engagements in North Bengal as the reason for her skipping Wednesday’s meeting in the national capital. According to sources, Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar conveyed that he was not keeping well while Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav also expressed his inability to attend the meeting. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, who leads the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, is unable to attend due to cyclone Michaung that has hit the southern state.
Since Sunday’s Assembly poll results, leaders of the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), JDU, Trinamool and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) have said the Congress should be more accommodating when it comes to its regional allies. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan blamed the Congress’ losses on its “greed” and unwillingness to take along its INDIA partners.
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On Tuesday, Vijayan said the Congress will have to decide whether it was fighting the BJP or the Left Democratic Front (LDF) while fielding Rahul Gandhi from Wayanad in the Lok Sabha polls next year. In Lucknow, Akhilesh Yadav, said, "Had the behaviour of the Congress party been different in one of the states, it too would have seen a change." The SP has been upset with the Congress over not being accommodated in Madhya Pradesh by the Congress while announcing its candidates for the state and has openly expressed its displeasure.
In the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, the BJP objected to a pejorative reference to the Hindi heartland by a DMK MP. The chair later expunged the remark and DMK MP D N V Senthilkumar issued a public apology in the evening. The DMK MP’s comments come in the backdrop of some, including Congress leaders, referring to the recent assembly election results as a 'North-South divide' with the Congress winning in Telangana following on its Karnataka win in May while the BJP swept the Hindi heartland states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan.
During the elections, the BJP top leadership had criticised remarks on Sanatan Dharma by DMK leaders, which was one reason that had led Congress Madhya Pradesh state unit chief Kamal Nath to cancel a proposed joint opposition rally in Bhopal.
In a post on X on Tuesday morning, Prime Minister Narendra Modi cautioned people to be alert to the Opposition's divisive agenda. He was reacting to an X post captioned "Meltdown-e-Azam" (great meltdown) of a news clip that cited "excuses" and alleged attempts by an "ecosystem" to stoke regional divide and insult voters in Hindi speaking states after the BJP swept to power in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
Modi posted, "May they be happy with their arrogance, lies, pessimism and ignorance. But... Beware of their divisive agenda. An old habit of 70 years can't go away so easily. Also, such is the wisdom of the people that they have to be prepared for many more meltdowns ahead." The prime minister punctuated his reply with several emojis. He rarely uses emojis in his social media posts.
