Bhubaneswar: : On a mission to unite like-minded opposition parties to cobble up a grand opposition alliance against the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will today meet his Odisha counterpart and Biju Janata Dal chief Naveen Patnaik in Bhubaneswar. He, along with his deputy and RJ(D) leader Tejashwi Yadav had recently met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata, who herself had met Naveen Patnaik a few days ago.
Nitish Kumar will also meet NCP Chief Sharad Pawar and Shiv Sena (UBT) Chief Uddhav Thackeray in Mumbai on Thursday.
Patnaik, one of the longest-serving Chief Ministers of any state in the country, is, like Nitish Kumar, a former BJP ally. He has tried to remain equidistant from the Congress and the BJP since he exited NDA in 2008. However, he has supported the BJP government in the passage of several important Bills in Parliament.
The ‘Nitish formula’, which the Bihar Chief Minister is believed to be presenting to Opposition leaders, suggests one opposition candidate in each parliamentary seat against the BJP — a Herculean challenge requiring sophisticated political negotiation given the individual aspirations of a divided Opposition.
Nitish Kumar is also planning a big meeting of all Opposition Leaders in Delhi on May 18.
Sharad Pawar had confirmed his meeting with Nitish Kumar at his press conference during which he announced his decision to withdraw his resignation as NCP boss.
The Bihar Chief Minister, who snapped ties with BJP last year, vowing to defeat it in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, has toured many places and met political leaders of various hues as part of his “opposition unity drive”.
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