The State has witnessed an intense political churn ever since Manohar Parrikar passed away and the slogan of coalition dharma has indiscreetly turned into coalition drama. From politics of defections and immorality to the high rewards of betrayal, the people of Goa have seen it all. The two new MGP imports have cracked a jackpot overnight. Deepak Pauskar who was sworn in at one of those midnight ceremonies is given the most lucrative PWD portfolio, held earlier by Sudin Dhavalikar. And tourism minister Manohar Babu Ajgaonkar got himself elevated as a deputy chief minister, a post earlier held by Sudin.
The breakaway duo of the MGP may have had the last laugh putting themselves on a high pedestal, but their induction has not gone down well with majority of the allies and key players in the BJP camp. The fact that majority of the cabinet members were conspicuous by their absence at the midnight swearing-in of Pauskar explains the resentment within.
Apparently, BJP’s own legislators and key players in the coalition have not taken the move too well. The fact that only Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Power Minister Nilesh Cabral and Govind Gaude who is a sworn enemy of the Dhavalikars, attended the swearing-in, says it all. Conspicuous by their absence were the Goa Forward trio -- Vijai Sardesai, Vinod Palyekar and Jayesh Salgaoncar, Vishwajit Rane who once was the hot contender for the leadership post, senior Congressmen-turned-saffron Mauvin Godinho, Calangute MLA Michael Lobo, Rohan Khaunte, Alina Saldana, Glen Ticlo and even Rajesh Patnekar whose name is being considered for the Speaker’s post.
Desperate attempts to get the leaders to attend the ceremony fell on deaf ears and even personal requests from Satish Dhond, known to be Goa’s Amit Shah could not yield any results. The resentment is understandable since senior members of the coalition were not kept in the loop. Health Minister Vishwajit Rane will be the most disgruntled since his crucial move of getting two Congress MLAs to save the sinking BJP boat have gone unrewarded.
The bigger concern, however, is breach of trust between the BJP leadership and deputy chief minister Vijai Sardesai, who promptly expressed displeasure over the midnight coup. Vijai seeking a roadmap from the chief minister over the post-Parrikar political scenario is an indication that he is clueless over BJP moves. There is a reason for concern since Vijai is sailing in a similar boat like Sudin and there will always be fears of BJP targeting Palyekar and Jayesh.
Vijai’s late night meeting with three Congress legislators, including one senior leader minutes before the Pauskar swearing-in gives the political tale a new dimension and should send positive vibes to the Congress.
