Congress has finally named All India Congress Committee Secretary Girish Chodankar to take on the might of Manohar Parrikar, with barely 22 days to go for the Panaji by-poll. For Congress, a party which once had a stranglehold over the capital city, it is a sheer disgrace to find itself struggling to even put up a candidate. Month's after getting a clear mandate from the electorate, the Congress Party has failed miserably in its responsibility and virtually conceded defeat when the opportunity came knocking once again.
The collective Congress failure in Panaji is nothing new. BJP has been in power here for a good 23 years and yet the party which boasts of its credentials as the oldest political organization has not managed to project a strong leader who could stand up, especially at a time when the stakes are huge. This is in stark contrast to the way the BJP goes about their politics where even in opposition strongholds they manage to make a mark. A case in point is Margao constituency where Digambar Kamat has an overwhelming majority, but there is still a Sharmad Raiturkar who will stand up to the challenge. If BJP could make inroads into Congress-dominated Salcete, what stopped Congress from making their presence felt in Panaji and Bardez for so many years?
Congress' politics has been of a different kind and for the several promises they made to rebuild and re-unite, they have been always hit by internal organisational issues. Between March 11, when they got the mandate, and now, Congress had almost four months to plan and strategise on what was perceived as a do-or-die kind of contest. Nothing happened on the ground and Congress continued to be an undecided and disjointed lot. GPCC president was frank enough to admit, although belatedly, that the party has neglected Panaji constituency over the years. Organisational issues have hit the party badly in Panaji. The huge disconnect between fast fading Panaji block and the party top brass has been the root of all problems. The Block and the High Command have never been on the same page and candidates are historically hand-picked and imposed by the leadership without any process involving grass-root leaders.
While Congress ticket aspirants in Panaji have buckled under the political strain and preferred to run away from the contest, what is appalling is that the party doesn't have a single Panaji candidate with a backbone to take on Parrikar, so much so that they have to now rely on a candidate from South Goa. The irony of candidates running away from the poll is so suspicious that Ashok Naik, who said he called it off over issues on support base and finance, decides to proudly announce his pull-out by spending a good sum at Hotel Mandovi.
The collective Congress failure in Panaji is nothing new. BJP has been in power here for a good 23 years and yet the party which boasts of its credentials as the oldest political organization has not managed to project a strong leader who could stand up, especially at a time when the stakes are huge. This is in stark contrast to the way the BJP goes about their politics where even in opposition strongholds they manage to make a mark. A case in point is Margao constituency where Digambar Kamat has an overwhelming majority, but there is still a Sharmad Raiturkar who will stand up to the challenge. If BJP could make inroads into Congress-dominated Salcete, what stopped Congress from making their presence felt in Panaji and Bardez for so many years?
Congress' politics has been of a different kind and for the several promises they made to rebuild and re-unite, they have been always hit by internal organisational issues. Between March 11, when they got the mandate, and now, Congress had almost four months to plan and strategise on what was perceived as a do-or-die kind of contest. Nothing happened on the ground and Congress continued to be an undecided and disjointed lot. GPCC president was frank enough to admit, although belatedly, that the party has neglected Panaji constituency over the years. Organisational issues have hit the party badly in Panaji. The huge disconnect between fast fading Panaji block and the party top brass has been the root of all problems. The Block and the High Command have never been on the same page and candidates are historically hand-picked and imposed by the leadership without any process involving grass-root leaders.
While Congress ticket aspirants in Panaji have buckled under the political strain and preferred to run away from the contest, what is appalling is that the party doesn't have a single Panaji candidate with a backbone to take on Parrikar, so much so that they have to now rely on a candidate from South Goa. The irony of candidates running away from the poll is so suspicious that Ashok Naik, who said he called it off over issues on support base and finance, decides to proudly announce his pull-out by spending a good sum at Hotel Mandovi.
