PANAJI
As candidates and political parties enter into the homestretch of their battle for power in the February 14 assembly elections, Goa'spoll campaign stage is getting crowded with national leaders from contendingparties.
A day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi is slated to visitand campaign for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the saffron party onWednesday unleashed Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister RajnathSingh on the campaign trail.
Shah addressed a well attended public meeting in Sanquelim,the constituency of Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, where he sought to narrowdown the theme of the 'Goa 2022' political battle to a Narendra Modi versusRahul Gandhi affair.
Shah said, the people of Goa have to decide whether theywant a government led by Rahul Gandhi or one led by Prime Minister NarendraModi.
“Goans have seen both the rules. Congress' rule ofinstability and anarchy and BJP’s rule of stability and development,” Shah saidand urged the people of Goa to give their mandate accordingly.
Another narrative that Shah and the Union Defence MinisterRajnath Singh sought to push through their campaign engagements on Wednesdaywas its signature argument that indecisiveness of Indian's first Prime Ministerand Congress icon Jawaharlal Nehru, which he claimed "delayed" theLibération of Goa.
Addressing a public meeting in Ponda, Singh said Goa couldhave been freed much before 1961.
"The Indian army would have liberated Goa in 1947itself if it was ordered to," Singh said even as he criticised RahulGandhi over his claims in Parliament of the closeness of China-Pakistan tiesand the Galwan Valley conflict.
The Congress, meanwhile, also stepped up its campaign overthe last several days by roping in it's tallest GenX leader, Sachin Pilot and agalaxy of star campaigners.
Pilot, who strikes a chord with younger voters, led theircampaign from the front on Wednesday à day after Congress general secretaryPriyanka Gandhi dedicated a whole day to the State.
A slew of other top Congress leaders including former chiefministers of Kerala and Karnataka -- Oomen Chandy and Siddaramaiah --campaigned strategically for party candidates in constituencies perceived tohave sizeable populations hailing from their respective States.
On Monday Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhicampaigned in a handful of constituencies, mingling with individual voters intheir homes door-to-door and addressing public meetings in Nuvem, Panaji andsome other constituencies
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) which is making a concerted pitchto attain a foothold on Goa's political turf too has roped some of its wellrecognised faces.
Apart from its supremo and Delhi Chief Minister ArvindKejriwal, AAP's ministers from Delhi -- Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodiaand Health Minister Satyander Jain -- have campaigned extensively over the lastfour days.
Interestingly, all these national leaders were compelled torestrict their activities to small public meetings and even sporadicdoor-to-door visits thanks to the restrictions imposed by the ElectionCommission of India against large public meetings due to Covid-19.
With yet another three days of campaigning to go untilcurtains come down at 5 pm on Saturday, more such visits of star campaigners ofevery political hue are expected to raise the electoral temperature in theState whose 11.64-lakh strong electorate is due to decide fate of 300-oddcandidates in the fray on Monday next.
