MARGAO
On the eve of the second round of discussions between the Congress and Goa Forward Party, the regional outfit opened the election office of its San Andre candidate on Sunday, bringing to the fore the moot question of whether all’s well between the two parties days after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi gave his thumbs up to the proposal of alliance.
This further brings to the fore another moot question -- what exactly did Goa Forward Chief Vijaibab Sardesai convey to his Congress counterpart Girish Chodankar and other top Congress leaders on Saturday when he had left the ball in the Congress court over the issue of alliance.
Sources said the Goa Forward Chief is believed to have urged the Congress to first decide and resolve amongst themselves how the principal opposition party wants to deal with the regional outfit “ whether the Congress want to stitch an alliance, or simply have an understanding with the Goa Forward or go for seat- sharing experiment or just want to concede little akin to giving alms to a beggar.
Aware that conflicting and contradictory messages emanating from the Congress leaders, more so after Rahul Gandhi blessed the alliance with the regional outfit in Delhi, is part of the mind games being played by the national party, sources said the Goa Forward Chief has apparently left the ball in the Congress court to decide on tying up with the regional party
Sources in the know say the Congress may not be averse to conceding the seats of Fatorda, Mayem and Mandrem to the Goa Forward Party in the ensuing polls. The regional party, however, is believed to have insisted on San Andre and has raised questions on seats such as Ponda and Canacona, where the Goa Forward had shortlisted local candidates.
Sources say during the Congress-Goa Forward meeting on Saturday, the Fatorda MLA raised the question whether the principal opposition party is fighting the ensuing polls to form the government to sit in the opposition. That Sardesai repeatedly harped during his interaction with the media that the ball is in the court of the Congress to first decide on certain questions indicates that the regional party is weighing other options as well.
