India Bloc Leaders Unite Against BJP Amid SIR Row

NEW DELHI: Calling for a broader Opposition mobilisation over the SIR row, TMC chief Mamata Banerjee urged INDIA bloc leaders on Wednesday to set aside their egos, saying extraordinary situations call for extraordinary action to fight the BJP and its machinations. At the meeting, as many as 20 INDIA bloc parties finalised a joint action plan, including rallies and ‘save democracy marches’. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said all parties at the meeting agreed that elections should be held through ballot papers instead of EVMs. Referring to her phone conversation with CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby last week, Banerjee stressed the need for parties to put aside their differences. “Mr Baby wrote to me, and I responded positively to him. I have been talking to other leaders also. Yesterday, I spoke to BJD’s Naveen Patnaik,” she is learnt to have told the meeting. Baby wrote to several non-NDA parties last week, seeking a coordinated response to the Election Commission row. His outreach included the BRS, AAP, DMK, BJD and TVK. Responding positively, Banerjee wrote back that the effort should be taken forward to mobilize all Opposition parties.