Time will tell whether Goa will have its own Mahaghatbandan for 2027 polls
At a time when they should have come together formally, the Opposition finds itself in a muddle. Goa Forward Party (GFP), which is an alliance partner of the Congress for the present Assembly term, has tied up with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) under what it calls the ‘Goa First’ alliance. This was announced a day before Ganesh Chaturthi by GFP chief Vijai Sardesai and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal.
The Congress, shocked by the development, initially lashed out at the GFP and Sardesai. Their leaders recalled how Sardesai, with two other GFP MLAs, ushered in the Manohar Parrikar-led BJP government when the saffron party had only 13 MLAs in the 40-member House in 2017. The Congress then had 17 MLAs and was the single largest party but could not form the government. A section of the Congress reportedly wanted to take on board some other parties but not GFP. All three GFP MLAs – Jayesh Salgaonkar, Vinod Paliencar and Sardesai – became ministers. Things were hunky-dory for GFP under Parrikar, but the coming in of Pramod Sawant as Chief Minister changed the state’s political landscape. Instead of depending on crutches, Sawant dropped GFP ministers and Rohan Khaunte (then Independent) from the ministry and admitted 10 MLAs from the Congress, giving stability to the government.
After hitting out at the GFP for “betrayals” in the past, Congress senior leaders have now begun saying they are open to talks for a formidable front against the BJP. To this, GFP’s reaction seems unclear. The regional party says it is working towards fulfilling the people’s sentiment – a united opposition front – to fight the BJP. On Sunday, it said that “unity in the larger interest of Goa is not only our priority; it’s our responsibility”. In the event of the Congress leading the coalition, it remains to be seen which parties will sacrifice their claims for the sake of unity. There could be major differences at the time of seat sharing.
The GFP had been trying to knock at Congress’ door more than eight months ago, but the grand old party has been slow in making its moves until two months ago. Congress has decided to go with the Goa Revolutionary Party (RGP) and is now awaiting talks with GFP. There is no doubt that the state Congress president Girish Chodankar has reactivated the party’s frontal organisations. On Goa’s political canvas, it is not just political parties that matter; personalities also do. Congress lost 21 MLAs since 2017 to the BJP – many of whom had the capacity to win their Assembly seats. In that sense, it was a setback for the party. For this reason, in the forthcoming elections, Congress will have to go with more new faces. Four years ago, eight Congress MLAs joined the BJP, but in how many of these constituencies did the Congress work to promote new faces? Knowing very well that the anti-incumbency against the BJP seems high, it should have gone for a voter connect exercise across the state more than six months ago. Since 2022, GFP seems to have done better groundwork than the Congress.
Fighting elections is an art and much depends upon how the war rooms of the political parties work. However, ground-level work and the local connect matter more. Congress is launching its Goem Rakhonn Yatra today. Politically, going to the grassroots is a positive move. Their national leaders joining the yatra is likely to boost their campaign. It is to be seen how well the party leaders engage with voters. Success of the yatra will determine its political fortunes.
