Three parties – the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United and Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party – will not attend an all-Opposition meet called by the Congress on Tuesday. However, the JDU and NCP have not yet officially confirmed their absence.
This punctures the Congress’ attempt to put up a united face of the opposition against the Centre’s decision to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. The Congress has called a meeting outside Parliament followed by a joint press conference by 16 Opposition parties on Tuesday. Barring the Biju Janata Dal, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, all national parties have been invited.
CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said it is not as simple as extending similar opinions in Parliament to a platform outside it. “I don’t want to push blame on anybody, but the success of any such united opposition activity always depends on prior consultations,” said Yechury, according to ANI. He added that Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal also has “similar reservations”, reported Hindustan Times.
JDU leader KC Tyagi told NDTV that they would like to know the agenda of the meeting. Tyagi said that all Opposition parties did not have the same opinion about demonetisation and added that no “common minimum programme” of the upcoming meeting has been decided.
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