What Mallikarjun Kharge said after INDIA bloc meeting
What's the story
After the meeting of the opposition's Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday said that the bloc will continue to fight against the "fascist rule" of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Kharge added that the opposition will take "appropriate steps" at the "appropriate time" to fulfill the "people's desire" to not be governed by the BJP administration.
Context
Why does this story matter?
In the results declared on Tuesday, the BJP—with 240 seats—fell short of expectations against a surprisingly strong showing by the opposition.
The BJP—after failing to secure a majority on its own—is relying on its partners to form the government.
This has emerged as the first real hit to the BJP since PM Modi's rise to power in 2014.
The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance has 292 seats, while the INDIA bloc has 234 seats.
Opposition alliance
INDIA allies' meeting on Wednesday
The INDIA allies met on Wednesday to discuss the possibilities of government formation, the alliance's future strategy, and whether to reach out to former allies—the Telugu Desam Party's Chandrababu Naidu and Janata Dal (United)'s Nitish Kumar.
To recall, the TDP has 16 seats in the Lok Sabha and the JD(U) 12. With 28 seats between themselves, the support of the two veteran leaders is crucial for the NDA government.
In such a scenario, Naidu and Kumar have emerged as "kingmakers."
Kharge's statement
'People's mandate has given a befitting reply to BJP'
Addressing media after the meeting, Kharge said, "The constituents of the INDIA bloc thank the people of India for the overwhelming support received by our alliance."
"The people's mandate has given a befitting reply to the BJP and their politics of hate and corruption. This is a mandate in defence of the Constitution of India and against price rise, unemployment and crony capitalism and also to save democracy," he added.
On Wednesday
Opposition leaders present at meeting
The opposition members present at the meeting at Kharge's Delhi residence are: Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha leader and wife of former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, Kalpana Soren, the Aam Aadmi Party's Raghav Chaddha, the Rashtriya Janata Dal's Tejashwi Yadav, the Communist Party of India (Marxist ) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury, veteran politician Sharad Pawar, and Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin among others.