Sharad Pawar vows 'unity of opposition parties' to take on BJP in 2024 Lok Sabha polls

Sharad Pawar, the leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Wednesday asked all opposition parties to unify against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

While speaking with media on Wednesday after welcoming Haryana leaders into the party, Pawar said that in order to compete with the BJP, the party "may consider fighting elections jointly under the Common Minimum programme."

The Common Minimum Programme is a document that specifies the minimum goals of an Indian coalition government. The program requires coalition parties to put aside their political differences in order to build and manage a government based on certain shared policies.

Pawar also urged the opposition parties to keep aside differences and unite on an anti-BJP platform for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Earlier, the NCP chief had said that efforts were underway at the national level to bring non-BJP parties together to create a public opinion.

The NCP Chief slammed the BJP-led Central government for allegedly abusing investigative agencies such as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED), claiming, "The BJP has launched a new initiative. The government is being brought down on the basis of money, the ED, and the CBI. Jharkhand is following in the footsteps of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Karnataka. We'll have to observe how we respond to the BJP's initiative. The opposition must come together."

Pawar also accused the Narendra Modi government of failing to fulfil any of the promises made by it since 2014, including ushering in "acche din".

The BJP's agenda is to keep smaller parties away from power, the NCP chief alleged.

(With inputs from PTI)

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