This is why second opposition meeting was shifted to Bengaluru from Shimla

Nationalist Congress Party's Sharad Pawar said on Thursday that the next gathering of Opposition party leaders will be held in Bengaluru on July 13 and 14 rather than the Himalayan foothills. According to insiders, one of the reason why the summit was shifted to Bengaluru was due to the difficulties in reaching Shimla amid heavy rains and landslides.

Representatives from over 15 opposition parties had met in Bihar's capital Patna on June 23. At the Patna summit, 17 political parties, including the Congress, pledged to fight the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. They also agreed to set aside their differences and work together to defeat the BJP. 

Shimla was chosen as the location for their second meeting to develop a united approach. They have, nevertheless, agreed to meet in Bengaluru on July 13 and 14. "After Patna, the next meeting of the opposition will be held in Bengaluru on July 13 and 14," Pawar announced. 

The second meeting, which will be led by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, is likely to produce an action plan. More than 32 politicians from various parties attended the first meeting, which Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar hosted at his residence in Patna. 
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No invitations were extended to Mayawati (BSP), Naveen Patnaik (BJD), K Chandrasekhar Rao (BRS) or YS Jagan Mohan Reddy (YSRCP). Jayant Chaudhary, the RLD's leader, did not attend the meeting owing to a 'pre-arranged family programme'.

Leaders such as JDU chief Nitish Kumar and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee reported there were 17 parties in the opposition gathering, while others such as Yechury indicated there were 15. There is uncertainty regarding the exact number of parties who have pledged to fight the BJP unitedly.

The Opposition meeting was strongly criticised by the BJP. The BJP described the Opposition gathering as a 'multi-headed selfish alliance' and compared it to wolves hunting in packs. BJP leaders pointed out that these parties had a combined strength of less than 200 of the 543 seats in the current Lok Sabha, but their leaders hope to exert significant influence on the BJP, which has a majority with a 300-plus count.