![INDIA bloc to win at least 295 seats, claims Congress chief Kharge after alliance meet INDIA bloc to win at least 295 seats, claims Congress chief Kharge after alliance meet](https://thefederal.com/h-upload/2024/06/01/450845-whatsappimage2024-06-01at174057.webp)
INDIA bloc leaders flash victory sign after a meeting at Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge's residence in New Delhi on Saturday.
INDIA bloc to win at least 295 seats, claims Congress chief Kharge after alliance meet
Kharge had earlier said this was an informal meeting where they would only discuss what kind of preparations they should have on the day of counting
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday (June 1) said that the INDIA bloc will emerge victorious on at least 295 Lok Sabha constituencies in the Lok Sabha elections when the counting of vote takes place on June 4.
Kharge stated this after holding a meeting with senior leaders of the INDIA bloc at his residence in New Delhi. The meeting was meant to discuss their strategy for the counting of votes on June 4, even as the TMC and PDP skipped it. He said they’ve reached the figure after making an assessment during the meeting.
Senior leaders of the Congress, Samajwadi Party, CPI-M, CPI, DMK, JMM, AAP, RJD, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (Sharad Pawar) attended the meeting and held discussions, even as the last phase of polling was underway.
TMC chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had already said they would not attend the meeting as there were elections in the state, while PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti did not attend the meeting due to personal reasons. “I may not go as my mom has undergone an eye surgery,” she had told PTI.
‘New dawn for India’
Opposition leaders who attended the meeting included Sharad Pawar, Akhilesh Yadav, Tejashwi Yadav, Anil Desai, Sitaram Yechury, Arvind Kejriwal, Bhagwat Mann, Sanjay Singh and Raghav Chadha, Champai Soren, Kalpana Soren, TR Baalu, Farooq Abdullah, D Raja and Mukesh Sahani.
Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and KC Venugopal were also present at the meeting.
“June 4th will mark the beginning of a new dawn for India. In today's meeting of INDIA bloc leaders, DMK will be represented by our party Treasurer and leader of DMK's Parliamentary Party, Thiru. T.R. Baalu avl," DMK supremo and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin had said in a post on 'X.'
Kharge had earlier said this was an informal meeting where they would only discuss what kind of preparations they should have on the day of counting and how people should be alert, whether it is about the EVMs or the use of Form 17C.
The meeting was only for discussing the counting preparations and the Congress has already told its state units to be alert about Form 17C, he had said.
The seventh and last phase of Lok Sabha elections is underway on Saturday, including in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
(With agency inputs)