Will BJP benefit from anti-Vishwajeet-Babush wave?
SANDESH PRABHUDESAI, PANAJI | 02 March 2012 13:52 IST
Babush Monseratte & Vishwajeet Rane
Goa Assembly poll is definitely hit with a strong wave against Family Raj and for a change. Equally strong is the wave against Vishwajeet Rane and Babush Monseratte, felt in many constituencies of Goa.
However, it needs to be seen whether this wave would ultimately translate into votes and help the opposite side, especially the BJP, other parties or the independents.
The 2007 election had felt a strong wave in favour of making Manohar Parrikar the chief minister. But in reality, BJP could get only 14 seats, against 20 for the Congress-NCP alliance, with two each of MGP, Save Goa and Independents.
But the mood appears to be different this time as the traditional Congress voter, including minorities, is openly moving with the candidates of opposite sides.
It is not felt only in Sattari taluka, where father Pratapsing Rane and son Vishwajeet Rane are contesting from Poriem and Valpoi constituencies, but also in other places.
Vishwajeet has apparently managed to get tickets for his men while he has also tied up with Babush Monseratte, who has this time shifted to St Cruz. He has fielded his wife Jennifer from his erstwhile Taleigao constituency.
A talk in the political circles is that both have joined hands with the blessings of the lobby of North India-based land sharks, who had managed to get lakhs of square meters of land converted for settlement in the Regional Plan 2011.
However, a strong Goa wide agitation had compelled the then Pratapsing Rane government to scrap the regional plan.
Vishwajeet had taken initiative in getting two BJP MLAs resign – Rajesh Patnekar in Bicholim and Dayanand Sopte in Pernem.
Besides Patnekar in Bicholim, the health minister also reportedly managed to get Sopte shifted to Mandrem for Congress tickets, after Pernem was amalgamated with Dhargal to reserve it for the scheduled caste.
However, reports gathered after field visit indicate that both these candidates are presently on a sticky wicket, mainly because they belong to the Vishwajeet-Babush camp.
Similarly, sources in the Congress confirm that Vishwajeet-Babush camp managed to get Canacona ticket to Isidore Fernandes, pushing out chief minister Digambar Kamat’s candidate Vijay Pai Khot, who had even resigned as the BJP MLA.
Khot is presently supporting BJP candidate Ramesh Tawadkar while former Canacona MLA Sanjay Bandekar also quit Congress to join and support the BJP.
Fernandes is thus finding it tough in spite of having Congress ticket in his hands.
Also belonging to this ‘land shark camp’ (as it is called by the opposition) are Cumbarjua MLA Pandurang Madkaikar and his brother Dhaku from Priol.
Pandurang is presently facing tough time as all the anti-Congress forces have gathered around independent candidate Nirmala Sawant.
Equally finding it tough to battle are Agnelo Fernandes in Calangute, Jennifer Monseratte in Taleigao, Ashish Shirodkar in Mapusa and Rudresh Chodankar in Mayem, probably because they are considered to be from Vishwajeet-Babush camp.
In fact Babush himself is struggling hard to win in Taleigao against new entrant and mine owner Dinar Tarcar, the MGP candidate.
Rudolph Fernandes, son of former St Cruz MLA Victoria, is contesting independent to spoil his chances.
This wave against Vishwajeet-Babush has come as a blessing in disguise for the opposition, especially the BJP-MGP alliance.
However, it is still not becoming clear whether the BJP-MGP have succeeded on riding over this wave to defeat all these candidates.
There is also a possibility that many of these candidates belonging to Vishwajeet-Babush combine would manage to win; but with a slander margin.
Some think- ruling Goa is their birth right and they can manipulate this by spending a part of the loot and plunder of the State they collected while in power....The people of Goa need to wake up and see their sinister game plan...It is a disgrace to see the drug peddlers, criminals, extorsionists, and real estate agents pooling their resources to grab power to exploit the State and it's resources and its people....When will the masses wake up to see their game plans...?
All the vote buying will take place by 3rd afternoon from 24 hrs from now but the bigger auction will be on 6th afternoon as the iindependent winning candidates will take palce. Still we have time to solve this problem till tomorrow morning. There are few candidates who are not going to sleep that is starting from Digambar, Churchill, Subash S, Ravi Naik, Babush, Maidkaikar,P Rane, Agnelo, to name a few just imagined even half of this list are losers, what about the others who are relying on them. I don't wont to hatch the eggs before they are laid but the current situation shows that the present combination of AICC which All India Corrupt Congress and National Corrupt Congress. will be dire consequences on 6th March.
My humble request for all goans to vote with their consience so that future goverment we can rely on and not at their mercy.