SHOW OF STRENGTH: The impressive crowd that turned out for the Congress’ Goy Rakhonn Yatra as it wound through the beach village of Calangute on Sunday.
MAPUSA
The Congress’ much-publicised Goy Rakhonn Yatra on Sunday acquired an added political significance in Calangute, with the presence of several local figures with past links to the BJP providing the biggest talking point of the march.
The participation of former Arpora-Nagao sarpanch Roshan Redkar was particularly noticeable. Redkar was once regarded as a close supporter of Calangute MLA Michael Lobo, but the two subsequently fell out. His appearance prominently alongside Congress leaders offered a visible indication that the political equations in the constituency may not be as settled as they once appeared.
Redkar, who was arrested in connection with the Birch fire case, was subsequently disqualified as a panch member.
Another notable presence was that of former Calangute panchayat member Sudesh Mayekar. A known BJP supporter, Mayekar had briefly moved to the AAP and contested the 2022 Calangute Assembly election on its ticket, finishing behind the principal contenders. His participation in the Congress yatra added another layer to the gathering's cross-party character.
The significance of the two appearances was amplified by the presence of senior Congress leaders, including AICC Goa desk in-charge Manikrao Thakare, GPCC president Girish Chodankar and Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao.
The Congress sought to make defections the central political theme of the Calangute leg, with Chodankar directly targeting Lobo over the 2022 switch of eight Congress MLAs to the BJP. Lobo and his wife Delilah were among the eight who joined the BJP on September 14, 2022, after being elected on Congress tickets.
Thakare said voters had the democratic right to question politicians who sought their mandate on one party's ticket and subsequently changed allegiance. Chodankar said Congress would continue to oppose what he termed “political betrayal”.
The symbolism was underlined when Congress workers later burnt effigies of the eight defectors, including Lobo and Delilah.
For Congress, however, the more telling picture from Calangute may have been off the stage: Former BJP-aligned local figures appearing at a Congress mobilisation in a constituency represented by Lobo. Whether these appearances translate into any organisational or electoral shift remains to be seen, but their presence gave the yatra a distinctly local political edge beyond its stated campaign against defections.
The Congress has thus used the Calangute leg not merely to revisit the 2022 defections, but to project an effort to reopen political space around Lobo's traditional turf.
