24 parties to attend 2nd Opposition meet in Bengaluru, Muslim League new entry: Report

A total of 24 parties are likely to attend the second meeting of the united opposition in Bengaluru to be held on July 17-18, news agency ANI reported citing sources.

While Indian Union Muslim League is a new entry, the Aam Aadmi Party has also been extended the invitation after the apparent showdown at the first meeting in Patna over the issue of Congress’s support to the ordinance issue. Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi is likely to attend the Bengaluru meeting, the report said. Karnataka deputy chief minister Dk Shivakumar also claimed the same earlier.

The Patna meeting was attended by around 17 parties. This time seven new parties have been sent the invitation, including “Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK), Kongu Desa Makkal Katchi (KDMK), Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), All India Forward Bloc, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), Kerala Congress (Joseph), and Kerala Congress (Mani).

KDMK and MDMK were previous allies of the BJP during 2014 Lok Sabha elections.