Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav had on Monday rejected reports of a rift within the INDIA bloc over Banerjee’s leadership pitch, saying “all is well” in the opposition camp.”Anyone can say that, no one comes to politics to be a saint, everyone has ambition, but a collective decision is taken,” Yadav told PTI outside Parliament.Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut has also indicated that his party was open to discussing if someone outside the Congress should lead the INDIA bloc. Talking to reporters in Delhi, Raut, a Rajya Sabha member, said his party’s ties with the Congress leadership including Kharge and Rahul Gandhi were “excellent.”Congress is a national party and has the highest number of MPs among the INDIA allies, he noted.”Still, if the INDIA bloc is to be strengthened again, everyone wishes to discuss (issues related to) leadership, who can give time to the alliance….(whether it could be) Mamata Banerjee, Uddhav Thackeray, Lalu Prasad, Sharad Pawar or Akhilesh Yadav,” Raut said.Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge is at present the chairman of the Opposition grouping, formed before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.Banerjee had said last week she could manage the dual responsibility of running the opposition front while continuing her role as the chief minister of West Bengal.Her statement comes at a time when broader tensions have emerged within the INDIA bloc due to dissatisfaction from various regional parties and the recent electoral setbacks for the Congress in Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Maharashtra.In an interview with a news channel on Friday, Banerjee expressed dissatisfaction with the functioning of the opposition INDIA bloc, signalling her intent to take charge of the alliance if given an opportunity, and will ensure its smooth functioning.
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