New Delhi: The INDIA bloc was intact and would unitedly take on the NDA government over key issues during the Budget session of parliament starting Jan 31, the Congress strategists said on Wednesday.
Congress parliamentary party chairperson Sonia Gandhi will hold a strategy meeting with floor leaders of both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on Jan 30 and leader of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge along with leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi will hold a strategy meeting of the INDIA bloc floor leaders on Feb 2 to discuss the group’s strategy against the NDA government during the session.
“The INDIA bloc is intact. We will unitedly take on the NDA government over any anti-democracy bill or issue during the budget session of parliament. The opposition wants to seek answers to some key issues affecting the people, especially the stress on the economy, price rise, lack of jobs and the plight of students and farmers,” Congress Working Committee member and Rajya Sabha member Syed Naseer Hussian told ETV Bharat.
The issue of unity within the INDIA bloc had surfaced recently as the Congress launched a strong campaign against the ruling aap in Delhi ahead of the Feb 5 assembly polls. The two had fought the Lok Sabha elections together.
Reacting to Congress's move, not only the aap but other bloc allies like TMC, NC and Shiv Sena UBT also started questioning the validity of the INDIA bloc.
When asked, the CWC member played down the issue saying the Congress was a national party and was helming the bloc while the regional parties had their agendas.
“The regional parties sometimes make statements based on their local agenda. The Congress is a national party and is anchoring the INDIA bloc which was formed for the 2024 national elections. As far as the state elections are concerned, the Congress takes a call on alliance based on ground-level feedback,” said Hussain.
He noted the aap had contested the Lok Sabha elections in Punjab separately and was the first to announce it wanted to go solo in the Delhi assembly polls.
“The AAP must first come clean on what it did during the past 11 years as far as development in Delhi is concerned. We are only flagging the concerns raised by the locals,” said Hussain.
Interestingly, the budget session of parliament is starting days ahead of the Delhi polls and days after a key Congress rally in Mhow in Madhya Pradesh on Jan 27 where the grand old party will announce a year-long nationwide agitation to save the Constitution.
“Today there is a need to take the message of saving the Constitution across the country. We are committed to constitutional democracy and will uphold it at any cost,” said Hussain.
As the INDIA bloc had unitedly demanded the resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah over his controversial remarks on BR Ambedkar, architect of the Constitution, the CPP strategy meeting will review the issue.
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