New Delhi, Mar 17 : In the first display of opposition unity against the Modi government, leaders of 14 political parties led by Sonia Gandhi today marched from Parliament to Rashtrapati Bhavan against amendments to the  land acquisition act and pledged to continue their “do or die” battle.

A delegation of 26 leaders including former Prime Ministers Manmohan Singh and H D Deve Gowda  met President Pranab Mukherjee and urged him to protect the farmers’ interests by impressing upon the Modi government “not to go ahead with the amendments in the Rajya Sabha” saying they were aimed at promoting “divisions and social disharmony”.

This is the first time Opposition parties have come together in such large numbers against the BJP-led government since the Lok Sabha election defeat last year.

Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, Congress Leader in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, Ramgopal Yadav (SP), Sitaram Yechury (CPI-M), D Raja (CPI), Derek O’ Brien (Trinamool), Kanimozhi (DMK), Dushyant Chautala (INLD), Praful Patel (NCP), Dharamvir Gandhi (AAP), E Ahmed (IUML), Joy Abraham (Kerala Congress-M) and Jay Prakash Yadav (RJD) were among the leaders, who met the President. (PTI)