Sonia Gandhi hosts 17 Opposition leaders for lunch on Modi govt's 3rd anniversary

Congress president Sonia Gandhi hosted a lunch for leaders of Opposition parties in New Delhi today. The get together of the Opposition parties comes at time when the Narendra Modi government is celebrating the third anniversary of its rule. While the upcoming presidential election is said to be on the menu of the luncheon meeting, the Opposition led by the Congress is also likely to discuss the possibility of promoting a joint front to tackle the Bharatiya Janata Party ever rising popularity among the masses.

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, RJD chief Lalu Prasad, BSP chief Mayawati, West



Bengal CM and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee, ex-UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, former J&K CM Omar Abdullah attended the meeting today.

"We discussed issues like Kashmir, Saharanpur and demonetisation. No name has been finalised yet for presidential candidate. A committee will be formed to decided on the name if there is no consensus candidate," Mamata Banerjee told reporters after the meeting. 

However, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, who is often seen as a probable challenger to PM Narendra Modi in 2019, skipped the meeting. Veteran leader Sharad Yadav represented the Janata Dal (United) instead.