MARGAO
Observing the first anniversary of the defection by the eight Congress MLAs on September 14 last year as a Black Day in the history of democracy, Congress workers on Thursday burnt the effigies of the party turncoats near the KTC bus stand before giving a call to the people of Goa to teach the defectors a befitting lesson.
GPCC chief Amit Patkar went a step further by announcing plans to open party office in Margao by October and take a lead for the party candidate in the constituency in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
The Congress did not spare the BJP either, saying the people of Goa will teach the ruling party a lesson in the coming election for the defection and misrule.
Led by the GPCC chief Amit Patkar, Congress leaders and workers assembled at the district party office before heading near the KTC bus stand with the effigies of the eight Congress turncoats to set them afire at the hands of the State party chief.
In his address to the workers, Patkar said September 14 is the black day in the history of democracy because the Congress had gone to the people in the 2022 Assembly polls against the misrule by the BJP.
He singled out Congress-turned-Margao MLA, terming Kamat as the “godman”, going to the extent of saying that it was the Margao MLA who had come out with the idea of taking the pledge in the Temple, Masjid and the Holy Cross that the Congress candidates, once elected will not defect.
“The Godman came out with the idea of taking a pledge in the holy places at a meeting of the Congress candidates on the plea that it will instill confidence amongst the people. Kamat was then the opposition leader and we all accepted his suggestion before going to the Temple, Masjid and the Holy Cross,” Patkar recalled.
Saying the eight Congress turncoats have backstabbed the people of Goa for their vested interests after seeking votes against the BJP, the GPCC chief said they had all quit the party either for the promised Ministerial berths or for money.
The GPCC chief took the platform to give a call to the people of Goa to permanently send home the eight defectors in the coming polls, exuding confidence that the people will teach the defectors as well as the BJP a befitting lesson for engineering defections.
Announcing plans to open party office in Margao for the benefit of the people of the constituency, Patkar said he would personally make his presence felt in the office once a week. “I would like to tell Madgavkars that the Congress would soon open party office in the constituency. Margao has been a secular constituency over the years, but we heard no voice from the defector when CRPF personnel targeted Muslims in Uttar Pradesh,” he said.
Patkar dared the BJP government headed by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant to fulfill the promise made to the people of Goa to provide Rs 5,000 as relief after the COVID pandemic.
