the goan I network
MARGAO
Will arch political rivals “ Goa Forward chief and Deputy Chief Minister, Vijai Sardesai and two-time BJP MLA Damu Naik, on the same page in the April 23 Lok Sabha election for the South Goa seat, support one candidate, but on different labels?
This question has come to the fore in Fatorda political circles and outside with the Goa Forward chief finally asking party workers and supporters to support NDA candidate Narendra Sawaikar. On paper, Goa Forward’s decision to support the NDA candidate means that he and arch political rival Damu Naik will not cross swords this time round. The bigger question, however, remains unanswered “ will the BJP make a clean sweep in Fatorda in the Lok Sabha poll with Vijai and Damu on the same page this time round.
Damu is on record saying that he and his dedicated band of workers are working hard to give the BJP candidate nothing less than 9,000 votes in the coming election. Vijai Sardesai, on the other hand, has asked his voters to support the NDA candidate. And, the Goa Forward chief is expected to share the dais of the BJP at the Lohia Maidan, Margao, on Saturday, to drum up support for Sawaikar’s candidature.
In the 2014 Lok Sabha election, when Vijai Sardesai, then an Independent MLA, had led the election of Congress candidate Reginaldo Lourenco, the Congress had trailed behind the BJP by 438 votes. While sitting MP Narendra Sawaikar had polled 9,715 votes, Reginaldo had to be content with 9,277 votes.
In the 2017 Assembly election, however, Vijai held his front from crumbling when he retained the seat by a slender margin of 1,334 votes. While Damu had polled 9,182 votes, Vijai ended up his campaign with 10,516 votes. The Congress was relegated to the fourth place with Joseph D’Silva polling 1,414 votes, while debutant Aam Aadmi Party finishing third with 1,479 votes.
Add the votes polled by the two arch rivals in the 2017 Assembly election and their tally of votes would nearly touch the 20,000-vote mark “ but one question that will come to haunt the Goa Forward chief is whether he and his 11 councillors will shift their votes to the BJP this time round.
Questions are also doing the rounds whether the Deputy Chief Minister will really put his heart and soul in Narendra Sawaikar’s campaign, when it’s an open secret that he would like to see a strong BJP or the Congress in his backyard keeping in the mind the electoral battle in the next Assembly election.
As of now, it’s still unclear how the Goa Forward supporters and workers would go about in the election, whether they would abide by the diktat of the supremo to vote for the BJP when many of them will not be averse in throwing their lot behind the Congress party.
Says political commentator, Adv Cleofato Coutinho: “I look at the emerging situation wherein it will not matter for the BJP whether the Goa Forward supports Narendra Sawaikar or not. BJP leader Damu Naik has been working on the ground to galvanise the workers for the ensuing battle. The question whether Goa Forward can help shift its voters to the BJP or not will arise only on the counting day if Sawaikar ends up polling, say around 12,000 to 14,000 votes.”
He, however, hastened to add that Vijai’s writ is unlikely to run amongst his supporters in the absence of any cadre. On the contrary, Adv Coutinho said Goa Forward supporters will be more comfortable in shifting their votes for the Congress party in the scheme of things.
