The Bengaluru Police took down the banners and posters this morning.
New Delhi:
Posters targetting Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar emerged across Karnataka’s Bengaluru, where a mega meeting of 26 Opposition parties to counter the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls is underway.
The posters were seen at Chalukya Circle, Windsor Manor Bridge, and on the Airport road near Hebbal. The Bengaluru Police took them down this morning.
The posters read, “The unstable prime ministerial candidate” with photographs of Nitish Kumar on them.
The posters also featured images of the Sultanganj bridge in Bihar’s Bhagalpur, which collapsed last month, and another caption that read “Nitish Kumar’s gift to Bihar that keeps collapsing”.
There is a chance that former Congress president Sonia Gandhi — who was the chairperson of UPA — will be named the President of the Opposition front, and Nitish Kumar the Convenor, sources said.
The second day of the Opposition meeting coincides with the BJP-led NDA’s big meeting in Delhi, where 38 parties from across the country are expected.
Besides Mrs Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, chief ministers MK Stalin, Nitish Kumar, Arvind Kejriwal, Hemant Soren, Mamata Banerjee and RJD chief Lalu Prasad are among those taking part in the two-day meet. Sharad Pawar, whose party underwent a split earlier this month with the rebellion of nephew Ajit Pawar, joined on the second day.
Sources said all parties have been asked to suggest the name of the front, which should have the word “India” in it. The tag line will be “United we stand”. Suggestions have also been sought for the Common Minimum Programme. It was also said that the subject of states should be kept separate.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier today launched a scathing attack on the Opposition parties, alleging their focus is only family, and not the nation. “For them, family is first, nation is nothing. Corruption is their motivation. The bigger the scam, the more corrupt the person, the higher their seat at the table,” PM Modi said while inaugurating a new terminal at Veer Savarkar airport in Andaman and Nicobar’s Port Blair.
PM Modi further dubbed the ongoing Opposition conclave a meeting of “hardcore corrupts”.