The INDIA alliance will hold a crucial strategy meeting in the national capital on Monday, with 23 political parties confirming their participation. However, visible fault lines within the Opposition grouping have cast a shadow over the show of unity.The meeting, branded as the “INDIA janbandhan” gathering, will be held at the Constitution Club at noon. It is expected to focus on future political strategy, coordination among allies and preparations for upcoming electoral battles, including the road to the 2029 Lok Sabha elections.Announcing the meeting, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh on Jattvibeday said 23 parties had confirmed their participation, while acknowledging that some alliance partners would stay away.“There are some parties who have expressed their inability to attend this particular meeting for their own reasons,” Jairam said, while maintaining that these parties continued to oppose what he described as the Modi government’s policies on issues ranging from rising prices and unemployment to alleged attacks on democratic institutions.He accused the Centre of “snatching away the right to vote for millions of Indians”, targeting Opposition leaders through investigative agencies and damaging livelihoods through rising prices and economic distress.Even as the Congress projected the meeting as a display of Opposition unity, differences within the bloc have surfaced publicly in recent days.The DMK has decided to skip the gathering, citing what it called the Congress’ “betrayal” in Tamil Nadu, while the CPI(M) has sought a clarification from the Congress over repeated allegations that the Left had an understanding with the BJP in Kerala during the Assembly elections.Sources said CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby had decided to skip Monday’s meeting and deputed Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas to attend instead.In a June 5 letter to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Baby referred to statements made by senior Congress leaders during the Kerala elections and questioned allegations that the CPI(M) had entered into a political understanding with the BJP.“There was a systematic campaign by the Congress leadership during the Kerala Assembly elections that the CPI(M) and the BJP have struck a deal,” Baby wrote.The letter further referred to remarks targeting senior CPI(M) leader and former Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, questioning why Congress leaders had repeatedly suggested a nexus between the Left and the BJP.The meeting also comes at a politically difficult time for some alliance partners following recent Assembly elections, in which major regional players, including the TMC in West Bengal and the DMK in Tamil Nadu, suffered setbacks.Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien attempted to project confidence ahead of the gathering.“Meeting with a common purpose and clear intent. INDIA united. Many parties look forward to meeting in the spirit of camaraderie,” he said in a post on X.The Aam Aadmi Party has already publicly distanced itself from the alliance, adding to questions over the bloc’s cohesion as Opposition parties attempt to rebuild coordination amid shifting political equations across states.