MARGAO
Conceding for the first time that Salcete played spoil sport to party’s determined bid to retain the South Goa Lok Sabha in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Tuesday said that the six Assembly segments in Salcete, including Nuvem, Velim, Benaulim, Curtorim, Navelim and Cuncolim ensured the defeat of the BJP in South Goa in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls as the Congress scored a vote margin of 80 per cent in these segments.
On the other hand, Sawant said though the BJP led over the Congress in 11 out of the total 20 Assembly segments, the party could not take the 80 per cent vote margin in the party strongholds, leaving the party stranded midway in the battle.
He further conceded that party’s 400-seat slogan in the 2024 Lok Sabha helped the opposition to set a narrative to instill fears amongst the common man that the Indian Constitution would be changed if the BJP returns back to power with 400-plus seats.
Sawant, however, asserted that the BJP would return back to power in Goa with 27 seats in the 2027 elections for the Goa Legislative Assembly.
Addressing the party workers from South Goa at the district party office on Tuesday, the Chief Minister reminded party workers that though the party lost the South Goa seat by around 13,000 votes, the party managed to cross the two-lakh vote mark in the Lok Sabha election.
“There may be many factors behind BJP’s defeat in South Goa. One major factor is that the six Assembly segments of Nuvem, Velim, Benaulim, Curtorim, Navelim and Cuncolim in Salcete gave 80 per cent vote lead for the Congress. Though the BJP led over the Congress in 11 out of the total 20 Assembly segments, the party could not take the 80 per cent vote margin in these segments,” he said.
The Chief Minister, however, sent a message loud and clear to the INDI Alliance that they would be only day-dreaming if they think of coming to power in 2027. “Poll statistics suggests that the BJP had taken a lead in 16 out of the 20 segments in North Goa. In South Goa, the party led in 11 out of the 20 segments. If we add the seats, the BJP had led over the INDI Alliance in 27 Assembly segments,” he said, even as he thundered that the double-engine government will return back to power in 2027 with 27 seats.
The Chief Minister made an appeal to the party workers to fan out to their respective areas to thank the voters for supporting the party in South Goa and helping the party cross the two-lakh vote figure.
Party president MP Sadanand Tanavade said the party had put in hard work to regain the South Goa seat, but conceded that the party lost the seat by a few thousands votes. He urged the workers to prepare the ground for the Assembly election to ensure the return of the party in 2027.
Margao MLA Digambar Kamat, former MLA Damu Naik, former MP Narendra Sawaikar and Mormugao MLA Sankalp Amonkar addressed the meeting, which was attended by Vasco MLA Daji Salkar, Curchorem MLA Nilesh Cabral, Navelim MLA Ulhas Tuenkar and other party leaders and workers.
