New Delhi: As Congress leader Rahul Gandhi walks cross-country on a “Bharat Jodo Yatra” to rejuvenate the party, his own house in Goa fell apart Wednesday when eight of its 11 MLAs passed a resolution to join the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
The resolution to merge with the BJP legislative party was passed in the state Assembly. The eight also met Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant at the state secretariat before taking the call.
If the merger comes through, the ruling BJP will have 28 MLAs in the 40-member Assembly. Also, since two-thirds of Congress MLAs have decided to defect, they can avoid disqualification under the anti-defection law.
As per sources, Goa Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar who was in Delhi, has rushed back to the state.
The 8 Congress MLAs who called for the merger are former state chief minister Digambar Kamat, BJP turncoat Michael Lobo, his wife Delilah Lobo, Rajesh Phaldesai, Kedar Naik, Sankalp Amonkar, Aleixo Sequeira and Rudolf Fernandes.
“The Goa Congress Legislature Party has passed the resolution to merge into the BJP. We have taken this decision to strengthen the hands of Narendra Modi and CM Pramod Sawant,” Michael Lobo said after meeting Sawant.
Lobo, a former minister in Goa’s last BJP government, had joined the Congress right before the state elections earlier this year. The leader added: “All top Congress leaders who strengthened the party will leave in the coming days because there are too many differences between them. We are representing the people, we will have to hear their voices. (They) told us to leave and we are leaving.”
As per sources, the resolution was proposed by Lobo and seconded by Kamat. Sawant, thereafter, said the eight MLAs had joined the BJP and that the process of their formal induction would be completed soon.
“Congress chhodo (leave) yatra has begun from Goa and it will continue till 2024,” Sawant said, taking a dig at the party’s on-going “Bharat Jodo Yatra”.
Reacting to the developments, chairman of the Congress’ media department Pawan Khera said the BJP was disconcerted by the party’s nation-wide yatra.
“Those who could not participate in this tough journey to unite India, are now scared of the BJP and are joining those who are breaking India. It should be understood that India is watching,” Khera said in a tweet.
सुना है #भारत_जोड़ो_यात्रा से बौखलाई भाजपा ने गोवा में “ऑपरेशन कीचड़” आयोजित किया है।
सफ़र में धूप तो होगी जो चल सको तो चलो…
जो भारत जोड़ने के इस कठिन सफ़र में साथ नहीं दे पा रहे, वो भाजपा की धमकियों से डर कर तोड़ने वालों के पास जाएँ तो यह भी समझ लें कि भारत देख रहा है।— Pawan Khera 🇮🇳 (@Pawankhera) September 14, 2022
Vijai Sardesai of the Goa Forward Party – a Congress ally — slammed the dissident MLAs calling their move a “betrayal of the people”.
“This scornful act of undisguised loyalty and towards the very people who elected them will never be forgotten by the people of Goa,” Sardesai said.
The development comes two months after the party faced a similar scare when five of its MLAs went incommunicado ahead of the Monsoon Session of the Assembly. However, they joined proceedings later.
At that time, Congress’ Goa in-charge Dinesh Gundu Rao had removed Michael Lobo as leader of the party’s legislative unit in the Assembly alleging that he had been conspiring with the BJP along with Kamat.
Also read: Congress membership drive in Goa ends up a dud, only 2,600 new recruits in 2 months