TDP chief and AP CM N. Chandrababu Naidu is all set to bring together anti-BJP regional parties at a meeting to be held in Delhi on November 22. CBN is convincing Deve Gowda, Mamatha Bennerjee and other regional leaders to come together with the sole purpose of ousting the Modi government in 2019 general election. CBN is visiting Kolkata on Monday to meet with Mamata and discuss the need for setting aside smaller differences with the Congress and move ahead for defeating the BJP.
There are doubts among some regional players like Trinamool Congress and Bahujana Samaj Party that the Congress would not be cooperative in forming a national level anti-BJP front. Moreover, leaders of the Congress party in respective states would be more interested in protecting their own interests rather than working for the common goal. Mayawati has already expressed suspicions saying that the Congress is still feeling as it it has enough strength to take on and confront Team Modi in 2019 elections. Meanwhile, Mamata Bennerjee is also not so favourable to formation of a front inclusive of Congress. She is preferring the coming together of regional players which will decide on working with the Congress at the time of elections depending on the prevailing political situation at that time. Naidu’s main agenda ahead of November 22 meeting is to persuade the regional players and stalwarts to realise the need for immediate formation of an anti-Modi front so as to make it effective by the time 2019 elections approach.
Stalwarts like former prime minister Deve Gowda, Mamata Bennerjee, Nationalist Congress Party president Sharad Pawar, Lok Tantrik Janata Dal leader Sharad Yadav, National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, CPI leaders and others are expected to attend the Delhi meeting.
