Mumbai:
Communist Party of India (CPI) leader D Raja on Sunday met NCP president Sharad Pawar at his residence in Mumbai and discussed providing an alternative to the BJP in the meeting, a day after the saffron party’s defeat in the Karnataka elections.
Addressing reporters after the meeting, Mr. Pawar indicated that Karnataka’s blueprint needed to be replicated in other states, and for this like-minded parties would have to work out a common minimum program (CMP).
“Karnataka assembly elections have given a message. We need to work on creating Karnataka like situation in other states. The Congress alone has given an alternative to the BJP in Karnataka, but in other states, like-minded parties will have to work out a common minimum program (CMP),” the NCP chief said.
We will work on both the fronts (to make strategy like Karnataka and CMP) and we are starting this process, he said.
Raja spoke of a common understanding to defeat the BJP.
“The state level strategy can be worked out. We may now get some time to hold talks in Delhi. The BJP can be defeated and it will lose the 2024 parliamentary as well as the state (Maharashtra) elections. The myth of being invincible has been shattered,” he said, referring to the Karnataka election result.
In Karnataka, the Congress won 135 out of 224 seats, while the ruling BJP and the Janata Dal (Secular) led by former prime minister HD Deve Gowda secured 66 and 19 seats, respectively.
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