the goan I network
MARGAO
Will deputy chief ministers “ Vijai Sardesai and Babu Ajgaonkar “ shoulder the responsibility of garnering votes for the South BJP candidate in the Lok Sabha election in the absence of Mickky Pacheco, Avertano Furtado and Caitu Silva, who had all hit the electoral battlefield in 2014 parliamentary poll to garner votes for the saffron party
in Salcete?
In the absence of former chief minister Manohar Parrikar and not a single leader in its ranks, who can help make inroads in Salcete, where as many as eight Assembly segments are at stake, the BJP leadership is seriously contemplating banking on the two deputy CMs in Salcete to help the party candidate Narendra Sawaikar make a significant dent in the Congress stronghold.
BJP State President Vinay Tendulkar said the party leadership will bank on the two deputy CMs to keep the BJP in good stead in Salcete. “Deputy Chief Minister Vijai Sardesai’s Goa Forward Party is part of the NDA alliance. We will call him to guide the workers in a bid to strengthen Sawaikar’s campaign in Salcete,” Tendulkar said.
He added: “Though Deputy Chief Minister Babu Ajgaonkar is elected from Pernem, he wields considerable influence in many parts of Salcete. We will tap Babu’s goodwill amongst the people of Salcete to give a boost to our
campaign.”
Apart from former chief minister Manohar Parrikar, then Independent MLAs, Mickky Pacheco, Caitu Silva and then Salcete lone minister Avertano Furtado had all hit the campaign in support of Narendra Sawaikar.
While Caitu had organised dozens of corner meetings in his Benaulim constituency with Narendra Sawaikar in tow, flamboyant former minister Mickky Pacheco had mobilized his supporters by holding a mammoth public meeting at Nuvem in support of Sawaikar. In fact, the BJP had relied heavily on Mickky Pacheco and
Caitu Silva in Nuvem and Benaulim segments respectively and the result was there for all to see.
Perhaps for the first time ever in a Lok Sabha poll, the Lotus had bloomed across Nuvem, with Sawaikar crossing the 5000-vote mark, breaking all previous records.
Similarly in Benaulim, the BJP had managed to make huge inroads into the minority stronghold, polling as many as 4433 votes, even pushing local strongman Churchill Alemao, who had contested on the Trinamool Congress, to the third position.
It’s still unclear how the BJP intends to use the services of the two deputy CMs in the ensuing election.
Babu shares a close rapport with the marginalized sections of the Hindus, Muslims and Catholics. It is also an open secret that Babu’s influence is restricted only in certain pockets of Margao and adjoining Navelim Assembly segments.
A LOT AT STAKE IN SALCETE
Salcete has eight Assembly segments
This time absence of Manohar Parrikar is being felt
The BJP leadership is seriously banking on Vijai Sardesai and Babu Ajgaonkar in Salcete to help the party candidate Narendra Sawaikar make a significant dent in the
Congress stronghold
