Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday met senior leaders of some opposition parties, including NCP chief Sharad Pawar, in a bid to send out a message that she is serious about keeping opposition parties together. The effort to reach out comes at a time the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) are knocking on its turf in many states, including poll-bound Goa.
The meeting came on a day West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee was in Goa and Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao met his Tamil Nadu counterpart and DMK chief M K Stalin, reviving talks of attempts to forge an anti-BJP front. Besides Pawar, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, DMK’s T R Baalu, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut and National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah were among those who attended the meeting. Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Kharge were also present.