Elections throw up speculations of the weirdest kinds with politicos trying every trick in the book to outplay the opponent. One such instance was the social media post that the train to Vailankanni pilgrimage was organised by the BJP in a conscious attempt to lower the minority community vote count. There was however no truth in the story since it was not the special train under the government’s Dev Darshan scheme, but the standard weekly train running between Goa and Vailankanni every Monday and returning late Tuesday night.
The BJP has been the target in Salcete as the party candidate has been moving from pillar to post meeting people across communities in an attempt to build electoral bridges. Surprisingly, Congress which started its campaign on a whirlwind note in both North and South Goa seems to not have picked up momentum with meetings drawing a paltry crowd in both talukas.
The BJP has been playing to a plan so far, and turncoats seem to be driving the party’s campaign in the South. Digambar Kamat, Aleixo Sequeira, Mauvin Godinho, Chandrakant Kavlekar and even Aleixo Reginaldo and a few others who have switched over, have been at the forefront of moving with the party candidates across temples, churches and even markets. On the other hand, Congress which has the support of the INDIA bloc, has been a picture of stark contrast.
Given the fact that the Lok Sabha landscape is vast and that the Congress has lost valuable time in announcing candidates, both Capt Viriato and Ramakant Khalap will have a lot of running to do if they are to catch up with the BJP which has already begun its second round of campaigning.
Lok Sabha elections are about partnerships and outreaches, and the BJP has succeeded in both. Back in 2014, after Manohar Parrikar stormed back to power in the State at the 2012 election, it was the tie-up with Salcete-based parties and independents that helped him ride through Congress strongholds of Benaulim, Nuvem and even Nuvem. In 2019, Narendra Sawaikar did not have such comfort in the tie-up, and despite a BJP government at the State level, the party failed to retain the South Goa seat.
Congress need to learn from the past, and besides deploying the few leaders they have, it must engage leaders in AAP like Venzy Viegas, Cruz Silva and other allies like Goa Forward to take the campaign forward. The strength of the INDIA bloc is being tested in Goa, and it is to be seen how far the allies will back the Congress candidates.
Finally, speculative and misleading posts on social media may help in embarrassing parties and leaders and scoring brownie points, but that is not going to count on D-day. It is the outreach, the acceptability of candidates and to some extent money power that is going to fetch votes.
Congress may have fielded the best it has, but the task ahead is challenging, especially when the BJP strongholds outweigh the Congress bastions. In the South, the grand old party may bank on Salcete, but it has concerns in areas like Sanvordem, Madkai, Shiroda and some pockets of the hinterland where BJP or its partners are holding sway.
In the North, Khalap may be oozing confidence hoping to overpower Shripad Naik, but both parties cannot discount Manoj Parab who is emerging as a dark horse. He has shown the exuberance and firepower to take on any opposition.
With time running out, it is to be seen how parties brace up as the campaign shifts gears. For now, margins of over one lakh or even sixty thousand remain as vague as a shadow.
