the goan I network
MARGAO
What is the Congress party’s stand on the mining issue “ whether mining should start via auction as recommended by the Supreme Court, or through a government-run Corporation or maintain
status quo by continuing with the leases?
Blame it on the difference of opinion in the Congress party or otherwise, the Congress leadership has been virtually silent on the party’s stand on how to go about on the contentious issue. Insiders in the party has attributed the situation to difference of opinion and a divide amongst party leaders on the issue, leaving the party leadership to tread a cautious path and to wait for the government to unveil its stand.
While Leader of the Opposition, Babu Kavlekar said the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) has constituted a five-member Panel headed by senior MLA and former Chief Minister Pratapsing Rane to study the matter, Goa Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) President Shantaram Naik said the party is closely watching the situation as the government is seized of the matter.
Party MLA, Reginaldo Lourenco, who had in the past batted for auctioning of the mining operations, said the GPCC Chief and the CLP leader may be in a better position to unveil the Congress party’s stand on mining.
Says Babu Kavlekar: “The CLP has formed a five-member committee headed by Pratapsing Rane with members, including myself, Digambar Kamat, Reginaldo Lourenco and Nilkhant Harlankar. The panel had one sitting and it has been decided to take opinion from legal experts before we take a decision. We expect the panel to submit its report to the CLP in the first fortnight of May”.
Babu sought to downplay divergent views emanating from party leaders on how the government should go about on the contentious issue. “There’s bound to be difference of opinion on such an important subject. That’s the reason why the CLP has formed a panel which will seek legal opinion from the experts before taking a firm stand”, he said.
GPCC President Shantaram Naik, on the other hand, said the Congress party is watching the situation, especially when the government is required to come out with a solution. “Let the government come out with a solution. We are ready to help the government by giving our inputs if there’s any such request”, he said. Naik, however, hastened to add that the delay in unveiling the Congress stand is not out of difference of opinion, but the party is closely watching the situation with the government dragging its feet on the issue.
Incidentally, when the media sought to know from the irrepressible Congress MLA Reginaldo Lourenco on the party’s stand on mining issue, more so when both the GPCC Chief Shantaram Naik and CLP Leader Babu Kavlekar had opposed auctioning of the mines, he shot back “the question may be posed to both the GPCC Chief and CLP leader.
When his attention was drawn to the fact that both Shantaram and Babu had in the past opposed
auctioning of mines, he said “they must have got the reply from Delhi when a delegation had called
on the central leaders. Since there was no rejoinder, I think their stand must be clear by now”.
Sources in the Congress party has said that while the GPCC Chief and the CLP leader had expressed their reservation to auctioning of mines, leaders such as Reginaldo Lourenco and former Chief Minister, Luizinho Faleiro have come out in favour of auctioning of the mines with conditions to protect the interest of the truck owners and people dependent on mining.
