CAA-NRC: Non-BJP parties coming together, says Sharad Pawar

Nagpur: NCP Chief Sharad Pawar said that Udhav Thackeray’s ‘Jallian Wala Bagh’ comment on the Jamia violence, indicated that the Sena-NCP-Congress alliance is on the right path.

“People need an alternative for change, and such an alternative has to be staying in the country,” Pawar said, in an apparent dig at Congress.

Responding to a query of reporters in Nagpur, Maharashtra, on whether an anti-BJP coalition was in the making at the national level, the NCP president said, “There are some indications that anti-BJP sentiments are on the rise in some parts of the country.”

Referring to Opposition leaders meeting President Ram Nath Kovind in protest against the new citizenship law, Pawar said, “It looks like non-BJP parties are coming together on some common issues. Some more time is needed for such parties to form a more organized structure to counter the ruling government.”

He said that contrary to the BJP’s expectation that the new law will be welcomed in certain states, it is being opposed in the party-ruled Assam as well. Senior NCP leader Praful Patel said, “It is impractical for a state to implement the NRC (National Register of Citizens) and keep people in detention centres. How many people can be placed in such detention centres and for how long?