Mumbai, 20/2:In a major step to forging an opposition unity to take on Narendra Modi government, TRS chief and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekar Rao flew to Mumbai on Sunday afternoon to meet his Maharashtra counterpart and Shiv Sena President Uddhav Thackeray and one of India’s seniormost politicians and NCP supremo Sharad Pawar.
Thackeray and Pawar, who are the chief architects of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government — with Congress as a partner — are two vocal critics of the BJP-led NDA at the Centre, Modi and his style of working.
Thackeray, the president of Maharashtra’s ruling Shiv Sena, telephoned Rao last week and invited him to Mumbai. Thackeray announced “complete support” to Rao’s “fight” against the BJP’s alleged anti-people policies and to uphold federal spirit. Rao is currently meeting Thackeray. In the evening, he is scheduled to meet Pawar.
Last year, West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee had met Thackeray and Pawar.
The Maharashtra CM proposed that the future course of action on the issue be discussed when Rao meets him. Appreciating Rao’s efforts, Thackeray pointed out that the former has “raised his voice at the right time to protect the nation from divisive forces”, the release said. Former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) chief HD Deve Gowda has extended support to KCR for the initiative.
Rao had told Gowda he would visit Bengaluru and meet him on the issue. The Telangana Chief Minister, who has been critical of the BJP and the central government on a number of issues, had said he will soon have meetings with his Maharashtra and West Bengal counterparts, Thackeray and Mamata Banerjee, respectively, as part of efforts to unite various political parties against the saffron party and the NDA government. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin has also favoured a conclave of non-BJP CMs.
Holding that the Narendra Modi-led NDA government should be dumped for its alleged “anti-people” policies, Rao had said he would play a major role in uniting anti-BJP political parties. TRS and BJP in Telangana have been engaged in a bitter of war of words over different issues for several months now.
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