PANAJI
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Monday dismissed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Goa as a failure, asserting that it would have no political impact on voters while accusing him of making baseless statements about the State’s development and governance.
Hitting back at Gandhi over his criticism of the Goa government, Sawant said the Congress leader should explain what his party had achieved for Goa when it was in power, instead of making allegations against the BJP government.
“The yatra (Goy Rakhonn Yatra) has become a zatra. It is a total failure,” Sawant said, adding that Gandhi’s visit would make no impact on voters or the BJP.
Responding to Gandhi’s reported remarks that Goa had become a model of corruption, Sawant countered that the State should instead be showcased as a development model. He said the Swayampurna Goa model had been studied by other States, whose leaders were seeking to replicate its initiatives.
“People are not fools to listen to Gandhi. Let him explain what the Congress government has done during its tenure,” Sawant said, challenging the Congress leader to compare the BJP’s record with that of the Congress government between 2007 and 2014.
The Chief Minister also attacked Gandhi over his alleged handling of the traditional Kunbi shawl, accusing him of disrespecting Goa’s traditions and the State’s Scheduled Tribe community.
“I believe the people of Goa will never forget the way Rahul Gandhi insulted our traditions,” Sawant said, contrasting Gandhi’s alleged conduct with that of Modi, who, he said, wore the Kunbi shawl throughout a programme at which it was presented to him.
In a broader attack on the Gandhi family, Sawant alleged that its members placed family and personal interests above national interests.
“For us, the nation comes first, the party second, and we ourselves come third. For the Gandhi family, however, their own family and personal interests always come first,” he said.
