INDIA Bloc To Meet Today Over Poll Body Row: Options And Gameplan

The agenda for the INDIA alliance meeting scheduled for Wednesday, September 30, has been finalised. The meet will broadly follow the points raised during the Congress Working Committee meeting held today, where a resolution was passed demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and calling for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's resignation.

The meet will also draw up a strategy to launch a nationwide agitation. Protests and public rallies against the Chief Election Commissioner will be held across the country, while an impeachment motion will be moved in Parliament.

The Opposition has been on the warpath following reports that two of the Election Commissioners had disagreed with Kumar multiple times over voter list revisions and inclusion of new names. Rahul Gandhi had claimed that Kumar had only helped the BJP steal votes.  

The spate of protests by the united Opposition will begin with a series of rallies - the first one in Delhi's Ramlila Maidan and then in various states. The INDIA Bloc might even announce the date of the first rally, sources said. 

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, and Sonia Gandhi will represent the Congress at this meeting, while Mamata Banerjee, Abhishek Banerjee, Kalyan Banerjee and Derek O'Brien will attend on behalf of the Trinamool Congress. 

Leaders of all Left parties will also be present. Additionally, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha's Hemant Soren, RJD chief Tejashwi Yadav, NCP's Supriya Sule, National Conference chief Omar Abdullah, and PDP's Mehbooba Mufti will attend. Shiv SEna UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray will join virtually.

Leaders from the Kerala Congress, VCK and MDMK, as well as Rajasthan's RLP and BAP, will also participate. 

While no representative from the Congress's Tamil Nadu ally TVK will be present, independent Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal has been invited. 

Samajwadi Party's Akhilesh Yadav will not attend the INDIA alliance meeting. Senior leader Harendra Malik will represent the party.

Sources said Mallikarjun Kharge and senior leader KC Venugopal have spoken with Akhilesh Yadav, who said he was tied up with the filing of nominations for the Rajya Sabha election, due on Wednesday.

Although this is being linked to the issue of seat-sharing between the Congress and SP in Uttar Pradesh, Venugopal has dismissed these reports as baseless.

The Aam Aadmi Party is not attending the INDIA alliance meeting, though they have said they will support the Opposition's move for the impeachment of the Chief Election Commissioner.

Congress's former ally DMK - which left the Opposition bloc after the alliance ended - also said they cannot attend the meeting though they support the issue.

CPM general secretary MA Baby has advocated for expanding the INDIA alliance and has written to all parties proposing the inclusion of anti-BJP parties from various states. No positive response has been received from the Biju Janata Dal, BRS, or YSR Congress, sources said. 

The Congress believes that the INDIA meet will be historic, as it will pave the way for a united opposition to take on the government both on the streets and in parliament, sources said.