MARGAO
In an interesting development coming on the eve of Congress Goa desk in-charge, Dinesh Gundu Rao’s visit to the State, Goa Forward Chief Vijai Sardesai has set June-end as the deadline for the Congress party to reply to the regional party’s offer for an alliance to fight the 2022 Assembly election.
The Goa Desk in-charge is scheduled to arrive in Goa on June 17 and is expected to take stock of the political situation in the state, including strengthening of the party organization ahead of the 2022 electoral battle. It’s isn’t clear yet whether Gundu Rao is coming to the state with any concrete proposal to resolve the GPCC leadership tangle or to collect inputs from party leaders and workers on alliance with like-minded political parties.
The Goa Forward chief, however, said the regional party cannot wait for long for the Congress to reciprocate to the party’s offer for an alliance to keep the BJP at bay. “Time and again, the Goa Forward had made offers to the Congress leaders for an alliance with like-minded parties to jointly fight the coming election. Somehow, leaders of the main opposition party have not responded to our offer. We cannot wait any longer as the elections are just six months”, he said.
Saying a political party goes to the election to win and form a government, Sardesai said the Congress party should get back to the regional party and explain whether it has any plans for a tie-up with other like-minded parties or go alone. “We cannot wait for too long. We have shortlisted our candidates in around 11 Assembly constituencies, but the party has been lying low in other constituencies, waiting for the Congress to get back on the alliance worker”, he said.
Admitting that he has been touch with the Congress high command functionaries for some time now, Sardesai said the issue of forging alliance needs to be settled at the earliest.
When pointed out that setting a deadline or a time frame for the main opposition party may be interpreted as a pressure tactic by the regional party, Sardesai shot back “this is not pressure tactic. The Assembly election is just six months away. We have to be prepared to defeat the BJP. The ruling party senior leaders have come down to assess the preparedness of the party in 2022. The Opposition needs to gear up too and at the earliest to defeat the BJP in the husting”.
The Goa Forward chief shares a perfect rapport with Leader of Opposition Digambar Kamat, with the duo coming together on the eve of the Margao Municipal Council election to defeat the BJP under the banner of the Margao Civic Alliance (MCA).
It could not be gathered whether any meeting has been planned between the Goa Forward Chief and the Goa Desk in-charge during the latter’s visit to Goa, beginning June 17.
