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Niranjan Takle
Niranjan Takle

GOA

Hanging in the balance

60laxmikantparsekar Tough odds: CM Laxmikant Parsekar seems to have lost the support of allies. But he is confident of victory | Janak Bhat

With the Congress failing to capitalise on the BJP’s internal strife, Goa seems too close to call

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A couple of months ago, it looked like the BJP was going to give Goa on a platter to the Congress in the assembly elections. But, delay by the Congress in deciding candidates and alliance partners has made the elections fiercely competitive. The ruling BJP was in complete confusion in October 2016, when Subhash Velingkar, former RSS state chief, decided to oppose the BJP in the elections by forming Goa Suraksha Manch (GSM). Soon, the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) broke its alliance with the BJP. It later joined hands with the Manch and Shiv Sena for a Grand Alliance. Deepak Dhavalikar, MGP supremo and former minister, said Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar was the biggest obstacle to good governance.

Parsekar’s predecessor Manohar Parrikar was the glue that held together the Christians and the MGP-RSS factions. Deepak and Sudin Dhavalikar of the MGP are staunch supporters of Sanatan Sanstha, a Hindu cult that has ranted against Christians and Muslims. But Parrikar managed to unite the MGP and the Christian MLAs. In fact, the church had openly endorsed the BJP in 2012, thus helping the party win 21 out of the 40 assembly seats. “All this changed when Parrikar left for Delhi, and Parsekar became chief minister,” said Anil Patil, a senior journalist in Goa. The church has now asked the laity not to vote for the BJP.

As soon as Parsekar became chief minister, Velingkar increased pressure on him to withdraw grants to the church-run English medium schools. He broke away because Parsekar did not budge. The BJP’s condition worsened when the rift between Parsekar and MGP led the latter to join the Grand Alliance. (In THE WEEK-Hansa pre-poll opinion survey, 50 per cent of the respondents said the MGP’s exit will affect the BJP badly.)

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A panicked BJP started looking for ‘winnable’ candidates—politicians with money and muscle power. “The BJP inducted two Congress MLAs, Pandurang Madkaikar and Mauvin Godinho, whom they had earlier criticised as the two most corrupt [politicians in Goa],” said Patil. This created a revolt within the BJP, headed by its former state vice president Dr Wilfred Mesquita.

But, the Congress leadership failed to take advantage. “The maximum defections happened from the Congress. Instead of consolidating when they got the opportunity, the Congress lost many of its leaders to other parties,” said Patil. Digvijaya Singh, Congress general secretary and in charge of Goa, said, “This has been the BJP’s way of functioning. Causing defections with money power, be it in Goa, Uttarakhand or Manipur. People understand this. We have fielded good candidates despite losing members and we are sure that we will form the next government in Goa.” He said Parrikar had kept aside his national duty as defence minister and had turned into a ‘self-defence’ minister. “He has to camp in Goa for over a month just to save his own constituency. This shows their lack of confidence,” he said. The Congress is supporting Babush Monserrate of the United Goans Democratic Party in Panjim, which has been Parrikar’s constituency for decades.

During the 2012 assembly elections, the BJP had promised to generate employment for 50,000 youth, give 04,500 per month as unemployment allowance, remove VAT on fuel and recover 035,000 crore of the alleged scam-money in 100 days. Former chief minister Digambar Kamat said: “The BJP failed to fulfil every promise. Unemployment increased, with mines shutting down. No allowance was ever paid, VAT is 20 per cent on fuel and nothing was done about the alleged scams.” The Congress has released a booklet on the U-turns and failures of the government.

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Vinay Tendulkar, state BJP president, said, “We have fulfilled 90 per cent of the promises that we made in 2012. We have done a lot for tourism, we have started IT hubs in Goa and many roads have been rebuilt. I am sure that the people in Goa will vote for us.”

The Aam Aadmi Party made a very good start in mid-2016, but it seems to have faded. Its leader Arvind Kejriwal’s public meeting in Shiroda attracted only 300 people. “Elvis Gomes, the AAP’s chief ministerial candidate, has a good image among urban voters of his constituency. But his constituency is dominated by rural voters and the former bureaucrat lacks understanding of rural issues,” said Jennie Fernandes, an activist.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari had hinted that Parrikar might return to Goa as chief minister. Gadkari said so apparently to appease the MGP. Parrikar also said that he yearned to return to Goa.

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The BJP has not announced Parsekar as its chief ministerial candidate. Obviously hurt, Parsekar said, “Naming me as a chief ministerial candidate would have given me a boost in Mandrem, my constituency.” He said he was banking on the social schemes that his government had implemented. He said, “We gave 02,000 as monthly pension to 1.5 lakh elderly people, 01,500 monthly allowance to over 1.5 lakh unemployed housewives, and 48,000 girls have received 01 lakh as help for their marriage.” Ramesh Gawate, a taxi driver from Panjim, said the voters would choose the lesser evil. “The party and candidate likely to cause minimum problems in our life will get my vote,” he said.

The BJP is contesting 36 seats, the Congress 37 and the AAP 39. “The biggest constituency has only 28,000 voters. So, if 500 to 1,000 votes shift, even the stalwarts might lose,” said Patil. “This truly is a battle till the last minute. Right now, the Congress and the BJP have an equal chance to get a slender majority. Otherwise, we will see a hung assembly and horse trading.”

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