Nitish Kumar meets Sonia Gandhi to discuss presidential election, 2019

New Delhi: JD(U) chief and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar called on Congress president Sonia Gandhi at her 10 Janpath residence here on Thursday, a move that comes amid the Opposition’s effort to come together and take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s saffron juggernaut.

Speculation is rife that the two leaders discussed modalities for a united fight against the BJP-led NDA during the 2019 general elections. They also reportedly talked about putting up a consensus candidate for the presidential election. President Pranab Mukherjee’s term ends in July.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi recently shared dais with Mr Kumar during the100th anniversary of the civil disobedience movement launched by Mahatma Gandhi in Bihar’s Champaran.

With Trinamul supremo and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee enmeshed in the Narada scam, AAP chief and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal facing an existential crisis after his party’s electoral setbacks and Mr Rahul Gandhi yet to prove his credentials as a vote catcher, Mr Kumar has emerged as a possible face for a united Opposition.

Sources said that Mr Kumar would need the support of the Congress to lead a united Opposition, as the outfit despite its electoral debacles retains nearly 20 per cent of the vote share across the country.

Mr Kumar, who was apparently keen to put up an Opposition candidate for the presidential election, has held parleys with the Left parties, BJD and NCP over the issue.