Don't have magic lamp to predict Opposition unity ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha polls, says Farooq Abdullah
The Hindu
National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah said he can’t predict Opposition unity ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha elections but said non-BJP parties must realise the need to come together to safeguard democracy in the country.
National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah on May 1 said he does not have a magic lamp that can predict Opposition unity ahead of the next year's parliamentary elections but said non-BJP parties must realise the need to come together to safeguard democracy in the country.
Mr. Abdullah added that his party will not beg for Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir but is ready to fight panchayat and local body polls that are likely to be held later this year.
"I do not have a magic lamp to predict the unity of Opposition parties [ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections]. Attempts are on [to forge a united front] and we hope that good sense will prevail and they will all come together," Mr. Abdullah told reporters at the party headquarters here.
He said former Jammu and Kashmir governor Satya Pal Malik has also pitched for Opposition unity to take on the BJP in the parliamentary polls.
"Malik (in the recent past) said a number of things… He talked about the 2019 Pulwama attack, how the request for five aircraft was declined and 700 trucks had to move on a road that was not fully sanitised — which is a tragedy.
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"In his latest statement, he asked for Opposition unity [against the BJP]. I hope the Opposition [parties] will realise the importance of unity and they will work together [to safeguard democracy]," he said.
With increased terminal entry points (eGates) at Mumbai International airport from 24 to 68, which is the highest number of e-gates at kerbside or landside in the country, the expansion will enhance the airport’s processing capacity to an astounding 7,440 passengers per hour at Terminal 2 (T2) and 2,160 at T1