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What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
NEW DELHI: Amid the bitter war of words between the Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) on upcoming Bihar’s bypolls, Sonia Gandhi called on former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav to enquire about his health and to bring like minded parties together.
According to Congress sources, Sonia Gandhi after holding a meeting of the party’s general secretaries, secretaries, state in-charges and state unit chiefs at the party headquarters here on Tuesday, she telephoned RJD founder Lalu Prasad Yadav to enquire about his health.
During the telephonic meeting, the two leaders also discussed to bring like minded parties to take on the BJP government at the Centre.
Sonia Gandhi has been holding talks to bring the opposition parties altogether to take on the BJP ahead of the 2024 general elections. Sonia Gandhi had also hosted a meeting of 19 Opposition parties earlier this year emphasising on the unity of opposition parties after sidelining the differences.
This comes days after former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi had also met Lalu Prasad Yadav at the first death anniversary of former Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan.
Lalu Prasad’s RJD has been alliance partner of the Congress since the UPA government at the Centre. He held the portfolio of Railway Minister in the UPA government. The two parties have contested the state assembly elections and the parliamentary elections together in the past.
However, the relationship of the two parties has witnessed bitterness in last few days after both the parties announced its candidates for the by-polls on two assembly seats in Bihar.
Even before his visit to Bihar, Lalu Prasad while speaking to media at his residence here went on record to say that had RJD given two seats to Congress to lose.
Lalu Prasad had also praised his son Tejashwi Yadav, who led his party in his absence in the state.
His remarks sent shockwaves in the Congress. The relationship of the two parties of late have not been cordial, especially after the performance of the Congress in the 2020 assembly elections. The Congress could manage to win only 19 assembly seats out of 70 seats it contested in the state, while the RJD won 75 seats emerging as the single largest party in the state.
