MAPUSA
In a high stake battle for the civic election in Mapusa, the BJP for the first time is attempting to repeat its success story without Babush.
The saffron party is also grappling with the lack of development stigma and the acute shortage of water crisis which has come at the wrong time for the party.
The grouping of the opposition for the first time ever has also upped the stakes for the ruling party panel in the city.
Former deputy CM late Francis D’Souza, also known as Babush, was elected five times as the MLA of Mapusa and in every election the council was firmly behind him.
In fact, one of the reasons for his stupendous success in the assembly polls was because he had managed to keep the council within his grip.
But besides the council, Babush also enjoyed a personal charisma with every section of the society, particularly the minorities.
“Babush was an affable character who no one could say no to. He came up from the grass root level and mixed with everybody. The goodwill which Babush had is not with BJP anymore. In fact, people are annoyed with BJP. There is overall dissatisfaction for multiple reasons,” said Adv Satish Rao, a resident of Mapusa.
Seconding him was Adv Mahesh Rane who said Babush had developed an excellent bond with the voters in Mapusa and Joshua D’Souza will take time to fill the vacuum.
“Secondly, Babush being a senior BJP man could influence the CM and get his work done which his son cannot,” Rane said.
Apart from the Babush factor, the delay in completing a series of crucial projects is also expected to work against the ruling BJP panel.
The state of the art new bus-stand, Ravindra Bhavan and sewerage network are three key projects which were promised in the 2015 civic election manifesto but have still not seen the light of the day.
Mapusa has also been facing severe water scarcity and constant power outages which could act as another negative for the BJP panel.
The fact that the opposition has managed to come together and cobble up a panel after more than a decade and a half will also play on the minds of the election managers in the ruling BJP.
Several leaders including former chairpersons and councillors having different political affiliation have made common cause and floated a panel for the first time in Mapusa.
They have even come out with an interesting manifesto giving the ruling BJP panel a run for the money.
Aware of the importance of winning the civic election in Mapusa, the BJP is leaving no stone unturned to wrest the council.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has attended at least half a dozen corner meetings trying to galvanize support for candidates of the Mapusa Development Front, the BJP-backed panel.
Former CM Laxmikant Parsekar who is the observer has also been attending corner meetings and visiting selective homes to woo the voters.
Besides, the BJP has its famed organization which takes care of the backroom maneuvering and provides logistic support on the Election Day.
“The CM addressing corner meetings has definitely given a boost to our campaign. With our government in power we expect to sail through,” said a senior party stalwart.
Ironically, the biggest factor that is expected to favour the BJP is the Covid scare. With the rise in Covid cases, the saffron party expects voters of the opposition camp not to come out to vote while the BJP will ensure its voters come out and vote.
