PANAJI/VASCO
The buzz surrounding the re-entry of Trinamool Congress in Goa's electoral arena sounded very real on Thursday with the arrival in the State of the party's Rajya Sabha MP Derek O'Brien and Lok Sabha MP Prasoon Banerjee, who is also a former international footballer.
While O'brien was reluctant to speak to the media about his mission in the State, his party has already sounded out several Goan politicians regarding contesting the 2022 Goa assembly elections on the party's banner.
All that is now left for confirmation that TMC will indeed contest the Goa assembly elections due in early 2022 is an official announcement from the party which could come by this weekend.
Two very telling developments on Wednesday and Thursday lent more clarity to the TMC's political intentions and ambitions in Goa -- one, the West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee herself included 'Goa te Khela Hobe' war cry in her by-poll campaign speech at Kolkata’s Bhabanipur where she is contesting to enter the Assembly and remain Chief Minister, and second the arrival of O'Brien and Prasoon in Goa on Thursday.
Over the last few weeks, a team of poll strategist Prashant Kishore's Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC), a political advocacy agency, has been stationed in Goa, assessing political ground and engaging with several politicians across all parties.
Kishore, who is being given a lion's share of the credit for TMC's spectacular return to power in the hotly contested election with the Modi-Shah led Bharatiya Janata Party in West Bengal earlier this year, is also expected to come down to Goa this week and join the O'Brien-Prasoon duo in their political sortie.
If it eventually happens, it will be TMC's third foray in Goa's electoral arena. In 2012, former chief minister the late Dr Wilfred de Souza, had led TMC's first electoral inning but didn't cut much ice polling just about 1.8 per-cent of the vote in the 20 seats they had contested.
Two years later, the party had pitted another former chief minister and current Benaulim MLA, Churchill Alemao, in the 2014 parliamentary election but again fared poorly.
Souces in the know said, "after a historic win by the Mamata Banerjee led TMC in West Bengal, the party has been eyeing a national footprint and has plans of foraying into Assam, Tripura and Goa.”
“The party is believed to have sent a team to Goa to survey and test waters before the party decides to find the right candidates and start a full time campaign to overthrow the BJP in Goa,” they said.
“Present NCP MLA Churchill Alemao had earlier contested the MP elections in South Goa on the TMC ticket. This time round, the TMC has emerged sharper and the will to contest and participate in mainstream assembly elections has grown stronger.”
Stating that the TMC has already sent feelers to many present and former legislators, the source said there are chances there will be meetings of TMC leaders with political leaders in the State.
“There are also some leaders who are upset with their present political party and they may look at TMC as the new option for them.”
“Besides, there are some leaders who have a strong football connection. TMC MP Prasun Banerjee is a retired international footballer and has captained Indian team at international level and so, there are chances that the party may use the football connection to finalise some very strong candidates in South Goa.”
None-the-less the next few days could see hectic parleys in backrooms with the O'Brien-Prasoon duo attempting to run a political marathon in sprint mode.
