MARGAO
Demanding immediate removal of Goa Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) Chief Girish Chodankar, South Goa MP Francisco Sardinha on Thursday trained his guns at the party’s state leadership, charging both GPCC chief and Leader of Opposition Digambar Kamat for running the party without taking seniors into confidence.
The MP fired a fresh salvo at the beleaguered GPCC chief saying the party leaders have conveyed to the Party High Command that incumbent chief Girish has not won a single election for the party as he cannot take everyone together.
Perhaps for the first time since the MP launched a tirade against the GPCC Chief, demanding his replacement, Sardinha dragged in the Opposition leader, charging the Girish-Digambar duo of running the party without taking others into confidence. In fact, Sardinha said senior party leaders, including him, Pratapsing Rane, Ravi Naik, Luizinho Faleiro, Reginaldo Lourenco should be taken into confidence in the organization building exercise.
Demanding removal of the GPCC chief as early as possible, Sardinha said the Congress will survive only after the GPCC chief is replaced. Apparently hitting out at party leaders for claiming the Congress will win majority seats, Sardinha said “we cannot dream of winning so many seats. We are trying our best to get majority seats. I would like to tell the people there are only two major political parties and others will go anywhere if they get seats”.
Justifying his demand for the immediate replacement of the GPCC chief, Sardinha said the party has seen its worst in the Zilla Panchayat polls when the party managed to win just four seats. “In the civic polls that followed, the party could win in only in two councils. We have told the High Command to replace Girish as he cannot take everybody together”, he said.
The MP recalled that the Congress has been on a decline since 2012 when the BJP came to power after lying to the people of Goa that the Congress government headed by then Chief Minister Digambar Kamat was involved in Rs 35,000 mining scam. “Our brothers and sisters believed Parrikar’s claim and brought our tally of seats in the Assembly to nine. That was the only time the BJP had got the people’s mandate. Last time round, they came back to power through the backdoor by taking the support of smaller parties”, he said.
Saying that he was elected six times as MLA and four times as MP on the Congress banner, Sardinha appealed to the people not to hesitate to guide him by bringing to his notice issues affecting the people. “I am not that wise to know everything. Since I am the ambassador of the people of Goa, I will take up issues affecting the people in Delhi”, he added.
Only sought BJP support to form
govt, didn’t nurture it: Sardinha
MARGAO: Refusing to accept the charge that he was instrumental in rise of the BJP in Goa, Congress MP Francisco Sardinha on Thursday said he had only taken BJP’s support to form the government, but had kept the party aside while ruling the state.
“Just because I was not listening to them, the BJP leaders dislodged me. Though I had taken BJP’s support to form the government, one should remember that I was the Chief Minister ruling the state and not the BJP”, he said.
Saying that he was a Congressman by heart, Sardinha, however, said he do not tolerate anybody kicking him. “I moved out the Congress after Churchill Alemao was elevated much above me. Everybody knows why I had to move out of the Congress. I am not a saint. I am a Congressman and I will fight for Goa”, he added.
