In the face of his harshest critics, he refuses to respond with malice. That is what makes him a pro-people and visionary leader, worthy of respect beyond the divides of party and power
The best way to know any politician is to work with him and gain direct first-hand experience. Among all the active politicians in Goa, I would give the top rank to Digambar Kamat, the newly sworn minister and popular MLA from Margao, a city ranked among the wealthiest in India. My view is based on over 30 years of experience with him, irrespective of the constitutional posts he has held. The first lesson one learns from him is accessibility.
Unlike most politicians, ministers, or MLAs who rarely make time to speak on matters of public interest, I found that Kamat was always available—from morning until late in the day—whether as MLA, minister, or even Chief Minister. Unlike many uncultured politicians, their paid cronies, or rude and arrogant officials who often address citizens dismissively as ‘patrao’ or ‘boss’, he would listen attentively and respectfully. If he trusted you, he trusted you completely. I often overwhelmed him with petitions, notes, and suggestions, but he never brushed them aside. Instead, he discussed them openly, like a true democrat, and even acknowledged my contributions publicly.
My association with him goes back to November 1994, when he was first elected as Margao MLA on a BJP ticket. At the time, I was voluntarily assisting late Victoria Fernandes, the independent MLA from Santa Cruz. With some breaks, I helped her in Assembly matters until 2012. Back then, Kamat, along with his colleagues Shripad Naik, Narhari Haldankar, and Manohar Parrikar, carried a small briefcase and used to rest in a modest room at the iconic Tourist Hostel in Panaji near the old Secretariat.
In the Assembly, Kamat spoke with force and passion, qualities that remain with him even at 71. He had personally witnessed the efforts I had made to strengthen Victoria Fernandes as an effective legislator, and that impression never left his mind. Later, he entrusted me with several important public-interest tasks, confident of my sincerity. I would credit him as being the only minister and Chief Minister in post-liberation Goa who could immediately recognize the merit of an idea, view it apolitically, and activate the machinery to deliver good governance. One example is the drafting of Goa’s cultural policy, the first state-level cultural policy in India and Asia. It began with a handwritten memorandum I had submitted to him on January 26, 2000.
By December 2004, a comprehensive draft, consistent with UNESCO’s framework, was ready. Turbulent power politics stalled its acceptance by the cabinet. Normally, drafts initiated under one party are shelved when the government changes. But Kamat ensured that the cultural policy prepared under a BJP-led government was not discarded, and when he became Minister for art and culture, he pushed it through the Congress-led cabinet of Pratapsingh Rane in August 2006. It was officially notified in January 2007.
Within two years Kamat made Tiatra Academy of Goa established under this policy. I remember Rajiv Sethi, cultural advisor to the Planning Commission, phoning me from Delhi to appreciate Goa’s cultural policy, which had been uploaded on the national portal as a model for the other states. Another example is the “Goenche Daiz” scheme for Goa’s 61 traditional occupations and artisans benefitting 80,000 Goans. When I suggested the idea in my memorandum in 2009, Kamat asked me to suggest names for a task force committee and prepare a detailed report. He wanted to know why I had proposed 30 members on the task force. When I explained that Goan bakers, potters, toddy tappers, weavers, tribals, and other stakeholders had to be represented, he was convinced, and the large multistakeholder committee was notified with me as the chairperson. Within a year, the report was complete.
Unlike the procrastination and delays often seen in policy matters, Kamat galvanised the machinery and obtained cabinet approval. The scheme was drafted swiftly in 2011 and remains the only such comprehensive policy for Goa’s unorganised rural sector. I also recall how, as Chief Minister, he took a dignified approach to political rivalry. For the felicitation of nuclear scientist and first Gomant Bhushan awardee Anil Kakodkar on 30 May 2010, I noticed that the then Leader of the Opposition Manohar Parrikar’s name was missing from the list. I phoned Kamat and suggested his inclusion. Without hesitation, he issued orders to add Parrikar to the programme.
On stage, in an impressive speech, Parrikar openly praised the government’s decision, saying, “We may be rivals, but I need to appreciate that sometimes the government does good work, and this event is one such example.” It became a memorable and historic ceremony, and it showed Kamat’s ability to put public good above political ego. When massive floods devastated Canacona on October 2, 2009, Kamat once again displayed this responsiveness. He sought my ideas the very next day, acted on them, and immediately implemented measures to prevent such disasters in the future. This kind of openness to citizen input, rare in our political culture, left a lasting impression on me.
Today, when the media often projects him merely as another politician hungry for power, I feel compelled to place on record my personal experience. In fifty years of my involvement in public affairs, I have not encountered another politician who combined accessibility, humility, openness, and responsiveness with the ability to recognise public good above partisanship. These qualities, more than any label or post, define Digambar Kamat. They explain why I regard him as someone capable of doing justice to any responsibility entrusted to him. In an age when politics is often reduced to anger, trolling, and vindictiveness, Digambar Kamat’s example shines differently. He holds no grudges, carries no hatred, and openly describes himself as someone guided by a higher, divine force. Even in the face of his harshest critics and bitterest rivals, he refuses to respond with malice. That rare capacity to rise above negativity and stay rooted in the service of people is what makes him a truly pro-people and visionary leader, worthy of respect beyond the divides of party and power.
(Scientist Nandkumar M Kamat holds a doctorate in microbiology and is a science writer, and a political commentator)
