Days after Mamata's 'no UPA' jibe, Rahul Gandhi to meet Shiv Sena's Sanjay Raut

By Team Newsable | First Published Dec 7, 2021, 2:05 PM IST

The meeting comes as the party emphasises the importance of the Congress in any opposition front against the BJP, despite the growing chasm between Mamata Banerjee's TMC and the grand old party.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi and Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut will meet today, amid rumours that the Sena will back the Congress in the state polls early next year. Raut and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi are set to meet at the latter's house in Delhi. The meeting comes as the party emphasises the importance of the Congress in any opposition front against the BJP, despite the growing chasm between Mamata Banerjee's TMC and the grand old party.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee visited Raut, Sena leader and state minister Aaditya Thackeray, and NCP leader Sharad Pawar in Mumbai last week. Banerjee declared after meeting with Pawar that the United Progressive Alliance no longer exists.

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According to Shiv Sena sources, the meeting was regular since the Sena leadership frequently communicated with Rahul Gandhi about problems relating to the coordination of the Sena-NCP-Congress alliance government in Maharashtra. The Sena may support the Congress in the state elections early next year as per the Congress insiders.

The Sena, on the other hand, has argued that building a parallel front against the UPA is tantamount to strengthening the BJP and that the gravest threat is that even those fighting against Narendra Modi feel the Congress should be eliminated. The Sena has invited Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi to clarify their intentions for the United Progressive Alliance. The political symbolism of extending support to Congress symbolises the surprising close closeness of two ideologically opposing parties that had struggled to get together in the first place. According to some rumours, the Sena may even join the UPA to heal the schism between the Congress and Mamata Banerjee, who slammed the UPA on a visit to Mumbai last week.

Also Read | Congress gone into 'deep freezer', Oppn now looking up to Mamata Banerjee to fill vacuum: TMC mouthpiece

TMC mouthpiece 'Jago Bangla' launched a new attack on the Congress on Friday, claiming it has gone into a "deep freezer." It also recently reported that Mamata Banerjee, not Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, has emerged as the opposition's face against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In Maharashtra, Raut's party, which shares power with the NCP and Congress, alleged on Sunday that "it appears Banerjee is thinking something fresh excluding the Congress."

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