MARGAO
Can the Congress return to power in Goa in 2027 by making the protection of the state’s scarce land resources the central plank of its electoral campaign?
That appears to be the strategy the party is beginning to shape as it prepares to take on the ruling BJP in the next Assembly election.
The Congress is increasingly seeking to tap into a growing public sentiment around the protection of Goa’s land, identity and fragile environment. With concerns over large-scale development, changing land-use patterns and the increasing pressure on the state’s limited land resources resonating among sections of the local population, the party appears keen to turn the issue into a broad-based political campaign cutting across caste, creed and geography.
A clear indication of this strategy emerged during the recent visit of Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge to Goa. Kharge arrived in the state, interacted with party leaders and workers and addressed a major organisational gathering at Verna. But what stood out was not merely the political mobilisation surrounding his visit. It was the message the Congress chose to put at the centre of the event — the need to protect Goa and its land.
The backdrop of the gathering carried the emphatic slogan “Goy Vikpak Divche Na”, reflecting the party’s emerging campaign narrative of not allowing Goa to be sacrificed to unrestrained development or commercial exploitation of its land resources. Kharge also endorsed the message by putting his signature on a board carrying the slogan at the venue, giving the campaign a clear stamp of approval from the party’s national leadership.
For the Congress, sources say the land question offers an issue that goes beyond conventional political calculations. The party appears to believe that the growing anxiety over the loss of agricultural land, pressure on natural resources, construction activity and changes to Goa’s traditional character could provide a rallying point for voters who may otherwise be divided on political or social lines. The party, however, faces a challenge to convert that sentiment into votes as it is expected to face a host of issues, including internal party leadership issue, alliance talks et al.
Betting on
'Save Goa' issue
Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao and the state Congress organisation are now preparing to take the message beyond party meetings and rallies. The proposed Goem Rakhon Yatra is expected to carry the campaign into towns and villages, allowing the party to directly engage with people over concerns relating to land, development and the future of the state. Sources in the Congress are hopeful that the emerging Congress campaign could become a significant political challenge to the BJP if the land issue gathers momentum on the ground. Kharge’s visit and the Congress’s decision to prominently project “Goy Vikpak Divche Na” suggest that the party is preparing to make it one of the defining messages of the 2027 Assembly election.
Congress to tap FCRA Amendment Bill issue
With Goa’s significant Christian electorate forming a core support base for the Congress over the years, the party is expected to capitalise on the BJP government’s move to pass the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, in Parliament.
The Congress has been vehemently opposing the Bill in Parliament. During his visit to Goa earlier this week, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge used the opportunity to send a clear message to the Christian minority community that the party would stand by them in opposing the proposed legislation.
Kharge’s assertion, following a meeting of the Congress Political Affairs Committee, that the party would oppose the FCRA Bill came against the backdrop of a meeting he had with a delegation from the Church body, the Council for Social Justice and Peace, and the Catholic Association of Goa during his visit to the state.
Political observers believe the FCRA Bill could provide the Congress with an opportunity to regain the trust and support of the Christian community, which, in the 2022 Assembly elections, voted in large numbers for non-BJP parties. The shift in support left the principal opposition party with just 11 seats in the 40-member Assembly.
Ekvott message loud and clear during Kharge’s visit
Unlike Congress national general secretary K C Venugopal’s visit to Goa last month, when he gave a clean chit to Goa Pradesh Congress Committee president Girish Chodankar, Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge used his visit to send a strong message of unity, both on and off the dais.
While the need to protect Goa’s land remained a key theme, an equally strong message from Kharge’s melava was for party leaders and workers to set aside their differences and unite ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections.
Kharge reiterated the call for unity after the meeting of the Congress Political Affairs Committee held a day later, making it clear that the party leadership wants all leaders and workers to bury their differences and work collectively to bring the Congress back to power in Goa in 2027.
