NEW DELHI: The UP and Bihar bypoll verdicts, a day after
Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s dinner to unite the opposition parties against the ruling BJP, has come as a shot in the arm for them. Hence, reverses like
Gorakhpur and Phulpur slipping out of BJP’s hands and RJD retaining its seats in Bihar, even while its leader Lalu Prasad is behind bars, saw a renewed show of solidarity between the opposition leaders that had mellowed a bit since they came together in 2016 during the presidential polls.
In
Parliament House, MPs from opposition parties were seen congratulating each other as RJD and SP MPs celebrated by distributing sweets to people around and even enraged NDA allies like Shiv Sena and TDP members were busy congratulating members of the Opposition camp informally.
One of the first to approach for the Opposition unity move, Trinamool Congress chief
Mamata Banerjee was among first leaders to congratulate SP leader Akhilesh Yadav, BSP supremo
Mayawati and RJD chief Lalu Prasad and tweeted about it.
“Great victory. Congratulations to Mayawati Ji and @yadavakhilesh Ji for #UPByPolls. The beginning of the end has started (sic),” she tweeted soon after reports of the UP and Bihar results started coming in.
To her post Prasad replied: “Together We are fighting. we shall fight & We will Win (sic),” thanking “Didi” in his tweet.
In Hindi, Prasad tweeted from jail saying: “The more you pour the fuel of conspiracy on Lalu, the brighter will this lantern burn. Millions of salutations to the people of Bihar for upholding justice. This is a victory of truth over falsehood,” said Prasad's whose official Twitter handle is managed by close confidants.
CPM MP Mohammed Salim said, “SP and BSP coming together has helped the voters express their anger against the BJP governments in Uttar Pradesh and at the Centre. The result is an indicator and it will have its impact in 2019, while speaking to reporters in Parliament. CPI leader
D Raja said, “These results would have an impact on the thinking of all the secular, democratic parties so that they evolve a proper electoral tactic, keeping in view the objective of defeating BJP.”
Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao said that a non-Congress, non-BJP alternative proposed by him is not a “third front” but a front that unifies people. “New method needs to come in India. Some have misunderstood when I said I will go to national politics. They think it is bringing together three or four regional parties... a third front. I am not going for petty politics. There is a big agenda,” he said.
