MARGAO
Winds of political change appears blowing in the A Class Margao Municipal Council post-March 11 after the Goa Forward Party joined hands with the BJP to form the Manohar Parrikar-led government.
Close to three months after Goa Forward party supremo Vijai Sardesai propped up the Parrikar-led government, the Margao Civic Alliance comprising of Vijai Sardesai-back Fatorda Forward and Model Margao-supported by Digambar Kamat has come under strain.
In fact, sources in the know said the Goa Forward leadership has veered around the view that it is not proper to continue its alliance with Digambar’s Model Margao group when Vijai Sardesai is the TCP Minister in the Parrikar-led BJP government
and a partner in the NDA
government.
At the time of formation of the Margao Civic Alliance, the two groups had agreed to share the post of Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson between Fatorda Forward-backed Babita Angle Prabhudesai and Model Margao-back Doris Texeira
respectively.
Much water, however, has flown down River Sal since 2015, more so after Vijai Sardesai’s Goa Forward decided to join hands with the BJP post-March 11. When The Goan contacted TCP Minister Vijai Sardesai to shed light on reports that his Fatorda Forward group may ask MMC Vice-Chairperson Doris Texeira, belonging to Digambar’s Model Margao to step down from office, he neither confirmed nor denied the reports, but hastened to add that all these issues will be decided at the municipality level.
Sources, however, informed that MMC Chairperson Babita Angle Prabhudesai is likely to ask her deputy Doris Texeira to step down from office to pave way for the election of her successor. Against this backdrop, the BJP camp is abuzz with reports that the post of MMC Vice-Chairperson will come to the group keeping in mind Party’s alliance with the Goa Forward party at the State level.
Though the name of senior BJP-backed Councillor Rupesh Mahatme is doing the rounds in the corridors of the civic body, BJP leaders pointed out that nothing has been decided yet, while not ruling out the possibility of a
party-backed councillor donning the mantle of Vice-Chairperson.
Commenting on the political development at the Municipality which will break the ties with Digambar Kamat’s Model Margao, a Goa Forward party functionary pointed out that such a political scenario was anticipated after the party joined hands with the BJP after March 11.
“We had expected such a situation to come anytime because the Goa Forward and BJP are now alliance partners. It is not proper to continue the alliance with a Congress leader at the Margao municipality while being BJP’s coalition partner at the State level. Moreover, the MMC alliance ought to have been over the day when the Congress had fielded a candidate against Goa Forward supremo Vijai Sardesai in Fatorda in the Assembly election,” he said.
