Mamata likely to attend opposition meet in Patna next month: TMC sources

Kolkata, May 29 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee is likely to attend an opposition meeting to be held in Bihar next month, party sources said on Monday.

The much-awaited meeting of parties opposed to the BJP may be held in Patna on June 12, according to hints that have emanated from a meeting of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s JD (U).

“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 on the condition of anonymity.

The idea of hosting a meeting of opposition leaders in Patna was floated by Banerjee, who had invoked the memory of Jayaprakash Narayan upon meeting Kumar in Kolkata last month.

After the Congress’ massive victory in the Karnataka polls earlier this month, Banerjee had said that the TMC would support the grand old party in states, where it is strong, in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The TMC supremo had also expressed hope that the seat-sharing formula would give priority to regional players in areas where they were strong.

Kumar, the JD(U)’s supreme leader, has been pitching for “opposition unity” ever since he snapped ties with the BJP in August last year, following accusations that the ally was trying to create fissures in his party and diminish his standing.

As part of the “opposition unity” drive, Kumar has held discussions with not only Congress allies like Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar but also its opponents like Telangana CM K Chandrashekar Rao.