Yuri alleges 15 yrs of misrule; Girish seeks white paper on liabilities
Margao: On the concluding day of the Goy Rakhonn Yatra on Sunday, which saw the participation of national Congress leader Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, the Goa Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) likened the current situation in the state to the time of the Opinion Poll and stated that only the Congress could free Goa from the BJP.
Goa Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao described the day as historic and recalled the participation the rally had drawn. He said thousands of people had joined the rally.
“I am reminded of the Congress at the time of the Opinion Poll, when Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi gave Goans a gift, the Opinion Poll. Nehru had at that time said, ‘Let Goa decide its own destiny. Goa has a unique identity and let it maintain its independent identity,’” Alemao said.
He stated that the Congress and former prime minister late Rajeev Gandhi had given Goa statehood and Konkani as its language.
Alemao also accused the BJP government of destroying and selling the state, alleging that it had been looting Goa for 15 years.
“Today, when there is destruction and sale of our state, we, the Congress, have come up again to free Goa from the Brasht Jumla Party,” he alleged.
Alemao stated that he believed the government had reached the end of its tenure and that people across the state were fed up with it. He cited the participation in the yatra as an indication of public discontent.
GPCC president Girish Chodankar stated that Gandhi with fighting for Goa, India and the people of the country.
“We started this yatra because we didn’t want our state to be sold. The regional plan that we have been using for planning was scrapped, and many bills were brought in to sell land on a suitcase-to-suitcase basis by converting it,” he alleged.
Pointing to the state’s financial position, Chodankar stated that its liabilities had risen to more than Rs 500 crore and challenged the Chief Minister to release a white paper on the matter.
Chodankar further alleged that the Chief Minister’s assets had increased 236 times, while the common Goan had not benefited, and accused the government of weakening the Lokayukta.
He also raised the issue of an alleged job scam, stating that no one had been held responsible.
“Because of all these issues, we have to defeat the BJP,” he said.
