Nitish Kumar's Opposition meet in Patna | Congress, DMK to attend, others yet to confirm

In a bid to consolidate the Opposition against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has scheduled a crucial meeting with like-minded parties in Patna on June 12. The meeting aims to gather support from various political parties in the joint Opposition effort. Here's the list of political parties that have confirmed their participation and those that are likely to attend the meeting.

Political parties that have confirmed their attendance for Oppn meeting in Patna

The joint Opposition meeting which is spearheaded by the JD(U) and its ally Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) will see the participation of the Congress party. Earlier, while addressing the media, Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram spoke about the June 12 meeting of Opposition parties saying, "Congress believes that all non-BJP parties must come together, that's the aspiration. We are all meeting in Patna in June; we will discuss every possibility." 

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, representing the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), also confirmed his party's attendance at the meeting. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Soren stated, "Since all Opposition parties have enlisted their participation at the meeting, we, too, would attend it."

Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin, the leader of the DMK, acknowledged the meeting but requested a postponement due to a scheduling conflict. Nevertheless, he assured that the DMK would participate in the meeting. "I will be attending the inaugural ceremony of Mettur Dam on the same date. It is an important event. Even the Congress president will be held up at a different event and won't be able to attend the meeting on that day. So, I have asked for the meeting of Opposition parties to be pushed back. However, the DMK will surely participate in the meeting," Stalin told reporters on Wednesday.

Earlier on Tuesday, Rajya Sabha member and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut also confirmed that Uddhav Thackeray and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar will attend the Patna meeting. "Nitish Kumar has called an Opposition meeting in Patna. Uddav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar will be attending the meeting," Raut told ANI.

There are also indications that West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee is likely to attend the meeting. "Mamata Banerjee is likely to attend the meeting of opposition parties next month in Bihar. She will place her ideas of forming an opposition unity and strengthening it in the fight against the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls," a senior TMC leader told PTI.

Can Nitish bring all the Oppn parties together?

Nitish Kumar has been actively reaching out to opposition leaders, including Telangana Chief Minister and BRS chief KCR and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, to foster unity among the Opposition parties. However, it remains uncertain whether parties like Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and BRS will be present at the meeting chaired by Nitish. The Congress party has expressed concerns and distrust towards AAP and BRS, alleging their assistance to the BJP.

"With a full sense of responsibility, as an official spokesperson of the Congress, I assert that we are still not able to trust Kejriwal and KCR... We leave it to the discretion of Nitish Babu. He may decide whom to take along," AICC spokesperson Alok Sharma stated earlier.

As of now, there have been no official statements from AAP, BRS, and other regional opposition parties such as Samajwadi Party, AIMIM, BJD, YSRCP, and Bahujan Samaj Party regarding their attendance. It remains to be seen whether Nitish Kumar can successfully bring together all the Opposition parties on a single stage on June 12 in Patna.