Thursday 28 Mar 2024

Rao keeps party leaders guessing on leadership

THE GOAN NETWORK | AUGUST 05, 2021, 12:34 AM IST

MARGAO 
The Grace Majestic adjoining the District Collectorate, Margao, was the cynosure of all eyes after AICC in charge, Goa desk, Dinesh Gundu Rao, and party observers checked into the hotel just around Wednesday noon.

By evening, Gundu Rao went into a huddle with state party leaders, but the close door interaction had nothing to do with the leadership tangle staring at the Congress party. On the contrary, the AICC in-charge along with GPCC Chief Girish Chodankar, CLP leader, former Chief Minister and party veteran Luizinho Faleiro and others were holed up inside the hotel as an agency gave a powerpoint presentation to the leaders on how to go about a survey ahead of the 2022 Assembly election.

Leaders swarming the Hotel Majestic gave indications that Gundu Rao has absolutely no agenda to discuss the leadership issue at least on day one of his three-day visit to Goa. 

A leader informed that the AICC in charge was scheduled to have meetings with representatives of around 5-6 agencies, along with state leaders, on the party’s preparedness for the coming election. Sources said the AICC in charge and the state leaders will take a call on roping in on the agencies to help the party conduct surveys ahead of the polls.

Before the powerpoint presentation in the evening, Gundu Rao gave an audience to the Ponda Block Congress workers, who were miffed over the dissolution of the block by the party leadership. 

Party leaders, including Sankalp Amonkar, were seen inside the Hotel Majestic around noon. Congress leader Trajan D’Mello also entered the hotel in the evening.

By evening, former Power Minister Alexio Sequeira made his presence felt at the hotel, but the purpose of his visit remains unknown.

Even as the party rank and file were anxiously awaiting Gundu Rao to announce the news on the leadership tangle, his engagement on day one suggests that the leadership issue does not figure on his agenda during his visit. 

In fact, a senior leader pointed out that after the one-on-one interaction with the state leaders in the national capital, only party national leader Rahul Gandhi will take the final call on the GPCC leadership issue.



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