MARGAO
It's destination Salcete as national and State leaders of major political parties, including the Congress and BJP, and debutant Aam Aadmi Party will all descend in the minority-dominated taluka in a bid to woo the electorate with as many as eight Assembly seats at stake.
The visit of the national leaders to Salcete will come against the backdrop of expectations that the election code of conduct expected to come into force any time from next week.
While the Congress campaign will be led by none other than a member of the Gandhi family and Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, Arvind Kejriwal will personally descend in the taluka to drum up support for the party candidates. The BJP campaign will be led by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.
Sources in the Congress camp said that Rahul Gandhi will fly down to Goa to participate in the concluding leg of the party’s padyatra at Margao, on Friday. AICC Secretary and padyatra in-charge Girish Chodankar said that Rahul Gandhi will either join the padyatra and walk with party leaders for around five kms before addressing the party workers at the SAG ground, Fatorda. “While Rahul has confirmed his visit to Margao on December 16, to address a public meeting at the SAG ground, Fatorda to 3.30 pm, confirmation is yet to come whether he would participate in the concluding leg of the padyatra or would straight away address the public meeting," Chodankar said.
On the other hand, AAP Goa coordinator Elvis Gomes said that party national coordinator and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will address a meeting in his home town Cuncolim on December 19 evening. Kejriwal will address only one meeting in Cuncolim on December 19, at 5 pm, to drum up support for Elvis Gomes. However, it is felt that Kejriwal’s presence in Cuncolim is expected to have an effect in the neighbouring constituencies of Velim and Quepem, where AAP has already declared its candidates.
Incidentally, BJP’s campaign in minority Salcete “ where the party had entered into tactical alliances with Independents and non-Congress parties in the 2012 election “ will be headed by the Defence Minister. Parrikar will make his presence felt in Margao and neighbouring Navelim constituency on early Sunday morning before capping his day-long visit with an address to the party workers at Margao amidst the galaxy of local party leaders, including Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, Deputy Chief Minister Francis D’Souza, Union Minister Sripad Naik, South Goa MP Narendra Sawaikar and others.
If Parrikar had got Salcete’s dominant seafarers community to support the BJP in the 2012 Assembly election by promising a slew of measures, including pension for the retired seafarers and widows, the Defence Minister will fulfill the long pending demand of the seafaring community on Sunday when he would inaugurate the seafarers cell in South Goa district collectorate in the presence of Fisheries Minister Avertano Furtado.
