THE GOAN NETWORK
MARGAO: Former Sports Minister Ramesh Tawadkar returned to the BJP fold on Monday in the presence of the party’s national and state leaders here on Monday, but one question that came to the fore at the Adarsh hall, Margao was whether he and South Goa MP Narendra Sawaikar have resolved their outstanding issues “ one of the factors that had led the former Canacona MLA to rebel against the party in the 2017 Assembly election.
The body language of both Tawadkar and the South Goa MP was the talking point in the audience, giving rise to speculations on whether they are yet to bury the hatchet. Former Sports Minister asserted that he has returned to the party fold on the advice and invitation of senior party leaders, making it clear that he had no meeting with Sawaikar before embracing the BJP.
To a query from the media on whether he and his band of supporters would descend into the field in support of the South Goa MP in the ensuing LS election, Tawadkar only said that he would go by the discipline in the party.
To another query on whether his decision to return to the BJP will have any impact in the mining belt, which has a sizable Scheduled Tribe population, Tawadkar shot back “How can these issues be resolved overnight?”
After revolting against the BJP and unsuccessfully contesting against the party candidate in Canacona in the 2017 Assembly constituency, Tawadkar had turned a bitter critic of the South Goa MP, squarely blaming him for the state of affairs of the party.
He replied in the negative when asked whether he had any meeting with Sawaikar before returning to the party fold. “I was approached by senior leaders of the party, who accepted the bad decision taken at the time which forced me to leave the party. I am not just a politician, but a social worker. When senior BJP leaders requested me to join the party, after realizing that the party did commit some mistakes, I and my supporters decided to return to the party,” he said.
When specifically questioned about whether he would support Sawaikar in the coming election, Tawadkar evaded a reply, saying “there may be differences, but I will maintain the party discipline."
Asked whether the issues raised by him have all been resolved by the BJP leadership, the former Sports Minister said “we may not move forward if we stick to the issues”.
BJP Organizing Secretary Satish Dhond, who is believed to have played a major role in the Ghar Wapsi of Tawadkar after his return to the state a couple of months ago, was present when Tawadkar was welcomed in the party fold by BJP state president Vinay Tendulkar in the present of BJP central leaders B L Santosh and National BJP spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi.
