A meeting of 15 opposition parties was held in Bihar's capital Patna on Friday (June 23) against the ruling BJP government at the Centre. The gathering witnessed the presence of key figures such as Sharad Pawar, the leader of the NCP, along with MPs Supriya Sule and Praful Patel. Uddhav Thackeray, the leader of the Thackeray group and former Chief Minister, was also in attendance, accompanied by MP Sanjay Raut and MLA Aaditya Thackeray.
Additionally, prominent Chief Ministers like Mamata Banerjee of West Bengal and M.K. Stalin of Tamil Nadu participated in the meeting. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, several other Chief Ministers, former Chief Ministers, and leaders from various parties were also present. However, the AIMIM party was not extended an invitation to the meeting.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is spearheading efforts to unite the opposition against the BJP, which led to the organization of this meeting. Kumar undertook visits to various states across the country, extending invitations to leaders from different parties. In Mumbai, along with Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav, Kumar personally invited Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar. He also extended invitations during his visits to other states. However, Nitish Kumar did not invite AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, which has caused dissatisfaction within the AIMIM party regarding the meeting.
AIMIM spokesperson Imtiaz Jaleel stated, "If you want to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party in this country, it seems to us that you cannot achieve that goal without us. We are strongly opposing the BJP, just like the parties present in Patna yesterday, the people who had gathered there. We also want to defeat them. But you are leaving a party like AIMIM and forming an alliance. Your goal is to defeat the BJP. So, you cannot achieve that goal without us."
Why are you ignoring us in your fight against the BJP? A significant section of the Indian population believes in the MIM party. Many people have faith in Barrister Asaduddin Owaisi. There are supporters of Owaisi in several states. But by disregarding Owaisi, you are undermining your own objective. If you invite us to your alliance, we will also join, he said.