PANAJI: Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Friday took a swipe at the Congress-led Goy Rakhonn Yatra, alleging that large numbers of outsiders were brought into the rally while Goans were left out.
Speaking at the inauguration of the BJP’s e-Library at Atal Bhavan, Chimbel, on the birth anniversary of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay, Sawant said the media had a responsibility to bring the government’s work before the public through “research-oriented journalism”.
“Misleading or fake Rakhonn Yatras are carried out, but bringing the genuine work done to the people is your responsibility,” Sawant said. He alleged that in the Rakhonn Yatra, “many outsiders were brought in in large numbers, leaving out Goans”. The Goy Rakhonn Yatra, organised by the Congress, began on September 22 and is scheduled to cover all 40 constituencies before concluding on October 18.
Sawant contrasted the rally with the work of BJP workers in Goa, saying local party workers had been working “day and night” for the BJP. He claimed that the double-engine government had protected Goa and taken the state onto the path of development. “We are confident that the people of Goa will once again bless the Bharatiya Janata Party to build a Viksit Goa and Swayampurna Goa,” Sawant said.
Earlier, Sawant inaugurated the BJP Goa’s e-Library at Atal Bhavan as part of the observance of Antyodaya Diwas, marking Deendayal Upadhyay’s birth anniversary. Sawant said the facility is connected to the BJP’s Central Library and will provide access to material on Central government schemes, policies, governance reforms, new laws and the party’s publications, including Kamal Sandesh.
He said the facility would be available free of cost to BJP workers and could also be accessed by citizens, scholars, researchers and journalists with prior permission from the BJP state president or office secretary. The Chief Minister said the library would help MLAs and MPs understand policies and governance reforms, while also providing students and researchers with material for their studies.
BJP state president Damodar Naik said September 25 was being observed as Antyodaya Diwas to commemorate Upadhyay’s contribution and his philosophy of Integral Humanism. Naik said the BJP’s journey was rooted in the principles of nationalism, Integral Humanism and Antyodaya, and that the party would continue to work towards ensuring social dignity and development for the poorest sections.
He said the party would carry these principles into the upcoming elections and pledged to follow the ideals of Deendayal Upadhyay, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Shyama Prasad Mukherjee. Naik also said the BJP would continue its work towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of a “Viksit Bharat” and Sawant’s “Swayampurna Goa”.
