the goan I network
PANAJI
Taking a jibe at legislators now in the Opposition who were formerly in his government, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Wednesday said that though he had never spoken of caste or religion earlier, his government was of and for all classes of people.
“Till today I haven’t said that this is a Bahujan Samaj government like some have been saying, but today I want to say that this is a government for everyone,” Sawant said while speaking in the Assembly on the motion of thanks for the governor’s address in January.
“Many are speaking of Goenkarponn and are taking it upon themselves to promote Goenkarponn. But let me remind you that I wasn’t born in a foreign country...I myself am a Goan from Kotambi, and this is a government for all Goans,” Sawant said, adding that many legislators were showing their frustration while speaking in the House, even though the common man has come to realise that this is a government for and of them.
Sawant also said that certain people with a dictatorial mindset are of the view that only they should be in the government. “Although (Portuguese dictator) Salazar left long ago, the seeds he has sown have not yet left, it is time for them to go,” Sawant said. On Tuesday, a legislator who promotes the slogan “Goem, Goemkar and Goemkarponn” had questioned what the government was doing for Konkani and Goemkarponn, even as Goa celebrated State Language Day (February 4).
Meanwhile, giving the “example” of former Opposition Leader Babu Kavelekar and nine other Congressmen joining the BJP, Sawant claimed that this was because the BJP was doing a good job, and that this was a positive sign.
The CM further went on to say that in Goa, there was never any religious politics, and no differentiation between Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, and that even with the CAA, “we should not let differences come in.”
