Cong stares at leadership uncertainty, alliance dilemma

The Congress meeting held in Delhi on Tuesday.

MARGAO
As the Congress attempts to strengthen its organisation ahead of the 2027 Goa Assembly elections—now exactly a year away— leadership and alliance questions loom large as a high-level meeting in Delhi has raised as many questions as it sought to address. 
A delegation of senior Goa Congress leaders, comprising GPCC president Amit Patkar, Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao, former PCC chief and Congress Working Committee member Girish Chodankar, and Goa desk in-charge Manikrao Thakre, met party president Mallikarjun Kharge and senior leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday. Party sources said discussions largely revolved around organisational preparedness for the 2027 elections. 
However, on the ground, party workers and leaders appeared anxious for clarity on several unresolved issues, including the long-pending leadership question in the State unit, the possibility of alliances with like-minded parties, and preparations for the upcoming municipal elections. Congress insiders privately questioned whether meaningful organisational strengthening is possible when key issues—particularly leadership and alliance-building—remain unresolved.
Leadership tussle continues
The leadership question continues to cast a long shadow over the State unit. Even as the anti-Patkar camp is expected to intensify its “Amit Patkar hatao” campaign in the run-up to the 2027 elections, several local leaders concede that removing the incumbent GPCC chief is easier said than done. 
Even if the party high command is persuaded to replace Patkar before the elections, the more difficult challenge would be identifying a consensus successor. Former GPCC chief Girish Chodankar, now a member of the Congress Working Committee, is widely believed to be keen on reclaiming the post. 
However, the organisation witnessed near-revolt last year when reports emerged that Chodankar’s appointment had been cleared, only for it to be stalled following opposition from his detractors. That impasse remains unresolved, leaving the party once again grappling with the same dilemma should Patkar be replaced. 
Amid this uncertainty, the names of South Goa MP Captain Viriato Fernandes and senior vice-president M K Sheikh are being discussed in a section of party circles, along with a few other leaders, should the high command opt for a candidate other than Patkar and Chodankar.
Alliance-building remains a challenge
Equally thorny is the issue of forging alliances with non-BJP parties. 
Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao’s proposal for a “Grande Opposition Alliance” (GOA) failed to gain traction during last year’s Zilla Panchayat elections, with the Congress managing to align only with Vijai Sardesai’s Goa Forward Party. 
Questions remain over the party’s approach towards other non-BJP players such as the Aam Aadmi Party, Revolutionary Goans Party, Nationalist Congress Party and the Trinamool Congress—all of whom are competing for the same non-BJP political space.
Congress workers are keen to know whether Tuesday’s meeting in Delhi addressed the possibility of pre-poll alliances for the 2027 Assembly elections. Party insiders admit that the organisation’s weaknesses were exposed in the recent Zilla Panchayat polls, particularly in the hinterland talukas, besides Mormugao where the Congress failed to make significant gains. 
This has raised serious questions about the party’s ability to win crucial hinterland seats—essential for forming a government in 2027—even if its strong performance in Salcete during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the 2025 Zilla Panchayat polls continues. The central question confronting the party, therefore, is stark: if the Congress lacks the organisational strength to win key hinterland constituencies, will it be willing to cede space to regional allies to counter the BJP? 
For now, the answers remain elusive.
2026 municipal polls: Congress strategy clear in Panaji, uncertain in Margao
As the Congress gears up for the 2026 municipal elections, Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao has unveiled the party’s plans for the City Corporation of Panaji, where the Congress is preparing to take on the political might of Revenue Minister Atanasio “Babush” Monserrate. 
However, confusion continues to prevail over the party’s strategy for the Margao Municipal Council elections, also due in April this year. Political observers and party workers alike are questioning whether the Congress intends to contest the Margao civic polls independently or enter into a seat-sharing arrangement with alliance partner Goa Forward Party (GFP). 
The uncertainty has also sparked debate over how much space Goa Forward chief Vijai Sardesai would be willing to concede to the Congress on his home turf. Sardesai is acutely aware that forming the Margao Municipal Council would be difficult without securing at least a few seats within the Margao municipal area. Against this backdrop, political circles are abuzz with speculation on whether the GFP will contest a limited number of seats in Margao, in addition to fielding candidates across all 11 wards in Fatorda, or whether it will leave the Margao municipal area entirely to the Congress as part of a broader understanding.
Congress plans district reorganisation
In a parallel organisational move, the Congress high command has, in principle, approved a proposal to reorganise the party’s district structure in Goa by increasing the number of district committees from the existing two to four. 
Party sources said the South Goa district committee is likely to be bifurcated into two units—one tentatively comprising the talukas of Salcete and Mormugao, accounting for 12 Assembly constituencies, while the remaining eight constituencies would fall under a separate district committee. A similar reorganisation is expected in North Goa, with sources indicating that the same yardstick would be applied to create two district units there as well. 
However, the proposal has raised questions within party circles over the fate of the existing district committees. Sources said it remains unclear whether the current district bodies will be dissolved once the four-district structure is formally implemented.