NEW DELHI: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Friday expressed concern over the INDIA bloc, echoing Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah’s sentiments on lack of coordination within the alliance of opposition.
While speaking to reporters, Raut highlighted the absence of strategic meetings after the Lok Sabha elections to chart the future course of the alliance.
“We fought the Lok Sabha elections together and the results were also good. After that, it was the responsibility of all of us, especially the Congress, to maintain the INDIAN alliance alive, sit together and show the way forward. But so far not a single such meeting has been held after the Lok Sabha elections,” Raut said.
“This is not right for the INDIA alliance… Leaders like Omar Abdullah, Mamta Banerjee, Akhilesh Yadav, Arvind Kejriwal say that the INDIA alliance is no more,” he added.
Raut also blamed Congress for the consequences and said the alliance lacks coordination, discussion and dialogue.
“If that feeling arises in people’s minds, then the largest alliance party in Congress is responsible for it. There is no coordination, no discussion, no dialogue,” Raut said.
“This means that people have doubts whether everything is fine or not in the INDIA alliance. If this alliance is broken once, then the INDIA alliance will never be formed again,” he added.
Raut’s comment comes a day after National Conference leader Omar Abdullah also sought clarity on the opposition alliance, particularly given tensions between the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party ahead of the assembly elections. Delhi.
Abdullah said if the alliance was only for the Lok Sabha elections, then it should be dissolved and the opposition parties should start working separately.
Responding to media questions on the time limit for the INDIA bloc, Abdullah said: “As far as I remember, there was no time limit set for this. Unfortunately, since no meeting of the INDIA bloc has been called , there is no clarity on this, neither in terms of leadership, nor in terms of agenda, nor whether we will continue or not Maybe after that the elections will be held in Delhi, it would be good if all the stakeholders of the bloc were called. from INDIA and would have clarity on this. If this was only for parliament elections.”
Rifts are breaking out within the INDIA bloc as Congress and AAP have decided to contest the Delhi assembly elections separately. The two parties are already in a state of political crossfire, with Delhi Congress leaders criticizing the AAP administration’s ten years of “misrule” and the latter hitting back.
Days ago, Congress treasurer Ajay Maken launched an all-out offensive against AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal, terming him anti-national, while the AAP issued an ultimatum to the grand old party to apologize for the same. This has set the stage for a fierce new political fight between the two INDIA bloc allies.
Prithviraj Chavan also made a strong call for abandoning electronic voting machines (EVMs) and demanded reversal of traditional ballot papers. “It can be argued that EVMs have not been proven to be erroneous and inaccurate, but this does not rule out the possibility that they malfunction and are manipulated,” he said, citing the example of Germany.
The former Maharashtra CM claimed that despite years of conducting polls through EVM, the European country has returned to the polls.
Delhi is all set to go to polls on February 5 and counting of votes will take place on February 8.