2 Cong MLAs join BJP, shatter party’s Goa plan

| | New Delhi
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2 Cong MLAs join BJP, shatter party’s Goa plan

Wednesday, 17 October 2018 | PNS | New Delhi

2 Cong MLAs join BJP, shatter party’s Goa plan

The Congress’ efforts to form a Government in Goa suffered a major setback when two of its MLAs joined the ruling BJP. Congress MLAs Subhash Shirodkar and Dayanand Sopte on Tuesday resigned from the Goa Assembly and also from the primary membership of the party and joined the BJP at a special event in presence of Union Minister Piyush Goyal.

Shirodkar and Sopte reached the national Capital on Monday late night and met BJP president Amit Shah before quitting the party. The Congress has accused the ruling party of “poaching” the legislators by using “money power and threats”.

Their resignation has now reduced the Congress’ strength from 16 to 14 in the 40-member House led by ailing Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar who enjoys the support of 26 MLAs.

The Congress had emerged as the single largest party after the 2017 Assembly elections, winning 17 seats. However, within days its number was reduced to 16 when its newly-elected Vishwajit Rane resigned.

The Congress had submitted a memorandum to Governor Mridula Sinha, staking claim to form an alternate Government. The Congress had then claimed it has the support of legislators from other parties and can form the Government, if given a chance.

The Congress had sensed an opportunity to topple the BJP Government when Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar was admitted into the AIIMS in Delhi and BJP’s allies started talking about the need for change of leadership. However, the party manager failed to engineer the much-needed defection in the BJP rank to pose any serious threat to the State Government.

However, the Congress maintained that the twin resignations were not a setback for the party as they were confident of roping in four MLAs from the BJP in their fold.

“It is not a setback for the Congress. We may have been reduced by two numbers, but our efforts to form the State Government will continue. They have taken two of our MLAs and we will get four from their camp,” Goa Congress spokesperson Nilkant Halarnkar said.

Congress Legislature Party (CLP) held a meeting on Tuesday in Panaji during which the current political situation in the coastal State was discussed. Coming out of the meeting, former Chief Minister and Congress legislator Pratapsinh Rane said his party will fight back. “They have left the party but they will have to face by-elections. We will fight it out during the election,” Rane said.

Meanwhile, the resignation letters of two MLAs were allegedly “leaked” on social media by a member of the watch and ward staff of the Legislative Assembly and he was suspended by the Speaker. Shirodkar and Sopte had faxed their resignation letters to Speaker Pramod Sawant.

Goa Pradesh Congress Committee president Girish Chodankar said the BJP has engineered a split in the Congress in a bid to “manufacture” majority in the House. The Congress had last month demanded a floor test while claiming that the BJP-led alliance Government is in disarray in view of the ill health of Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar.

“The BJP has engineered split by taking away two MLAs of the Congress in a bid to manufacture majority on the floor of the House, which indicates that the ruling party lacks majority,” alleged Chodankar. He said rest 14 MLAs of the Congress would remain together and there is “no possibility of any further split in the party”.

“The BJP is trying to break the Congress and poach MLAs either by using money power or terrorising them. Some MLAs had said in the past that they and their family members had been threatened,” he said.

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