The losers and gainers of last week’s cabinet expansion and portfolio reshuffle tell an interesting story. Alina Saldanha has been stripped of her key portfolio of Environment and Forests, Dayanand Mandrekar has lost panchayats, and Milind Naik has lost information and publicity. The last goes to the Chief Minister, just before the International Film Festival of India. Mandrekar’s comments and those of his supporters adequately sum up his hurt at not being given so much as a by your leave. The Siolim-based minister, whose constituency neighbours the CM’s, had made no bones about his backing for the deputy chief minister to be elevated as chief minister, when that post fell vacant in 2014. Nor was he silent when Satish Dhond, the key points man, was moved out of the state, in the behind the scenes factional maneuvers that simmer below the surface. More recent hobnobbing with the PWD minister may not have been viewed too favorably either.
Divesting Alina Saldanha of the key environment and forests portfolio, leaves the minister with a mere token role in government and caps the increasing disdain with which she has found herself treated by those who matter in government. Her supporters in Cortalim may be suitably incensed, but no one reading the larger political picture of the BJP’s project in Goa, was really surprised. False pride, ego and greed for office make good levers of manipulation, and those so played will not easily admit they were played. In joining the BJP that winter of 2012, Mathany Saldanha’s move led to a strange coalition between a Hindu majoritarian dispensation and a section of Catholic Chardors. The equation is simple “ one is a major partner, the other plays a minor role. If one is deceived by the flattery, there is no one to blame for naivety. At any rate, policies of use and discard are no stranger in politics.
All the environmental planks that Saldanha believed in soon became history in the current government. Long after her position became untenable, her opposition to some government projects put her at odds with them. In divesting her of her key responsibility, the dominant belief is that the party hopes to force a resignation. At any rate, there were enough indications that there are other claimants for the assembly segment and the current move, blunts the full blown criticism of dropping a “minority” minister and that too a woman.
Clearly, the BJP is getting into gear for the upcoming 2017 contest. For the moment, it has left the MGP portfolios alone, perhaps not wanting to rock that unsteady boat yet, while the government still has a last lap to navigate.
Political watchers may yet marvel at the number of plays it has in hand, all being adroitly, shrewdly and intelligently juggled in the run up to elections. The Bhandaris have got an increased quota of reserved seats in the upcoming municipal polls. Though these have eaten into the Scheduled Tribe seats, as pointed out, none of the latter are complaining. STs, meanwhile are being offered the belief that the party MP is lobbying for a four seat reservation of seats in the legislative assembly.
Promises are easy. They certainly flew thick before 2012. Deliveries have fallen far short. The medium of instruction issue that has held the Diocesan schools in suspense has yet to be resolved. Neither has the Portuguese passport issue. While the Regional Plan and shunting casinos hangs fire, the government has shifted the goal posts to other projects of Mopa, Chimbel and Tuem IT parks and sundry bridges. Mining is yet to resume and given the low prices of ore in the international market, that prospect appears dim in the near future.
While this may have been prime time for the opposition, it says “revenge politics”, a climate of fear and threats of cases being filed against leaders, has prevented the structures of democratic functioning from operating.
Political watchers describe the formations arraigning themselves, along the lines of those who have lost and gained in the past four years. Some describe it as a tug of war between Saraswats and non Saraswats, the former being held as huge gainers over the past years. The Catholics find themselves in the process of being completely sidelined in crucial areas. Comunidade land holdings are being targeted while the business sectors of tourism, professional jobs and government service is going a similar way.
The OBCs perceive a similar fate, banding themselves into the Bahujan Mahasangh. While the government may have acceded to dropping the sunset clause on agricultural tenancy, it has still left matters to the sessions courts to decide.
Finding itself with fewer, disillusioned and definitely uncertain allies in an election year, the party seems to be scouting for newer supporters. Plans to regularise migrant and illegal structures are an old strategy of creating captive vote banks. For Goa, it appears matters have reached a sorry pass.
