Goa election 2022: Hectic parleys on as parties prepare for fractured verdict

With counting day drawing ever closer, political

parties

have hit the drawing board to strategise how to either form or be an integral part of the new government.

With all indications suggesting a fractured mandate, parties have started exploring options and crucial political meetings have started taking place in Goa and outside, to form the next government.

Parties have already started holding back-channel talks with each other to assess the political situation post-counting. Parties have even approached independent candidates who are likely to get elected to garner their support in forming the next government.

Congress held a meeting with MGP to discuss post-poll strategy. Congress, which had contested the assembly election with only one MLA, has expressed confidence of winning the election. Speaking to TOI, state Congress president Girish Chodankar said that Congress would get a majority.

“We are talking with all political parties who have fought the election against BJP. We will get a majority on our own, but we urge all political parties to join Congress to respect the mandate given by Goans,” Chodankar said.

This is the first election in which BJP has contested all 40 constituencies, and also the first in the absence of former chief minister Manohar Parrikar. During the 2017 assembly election, before the results, Parrikar had started talks with regional parties to support BJP in case BJP fell short.

BJP state president Sadanand Shet Tanavade said that he would ask core committee members to remain present at the party headquarters on counting day. “We will watch the exit poll carefully and we have decided to chalk out the plan of action on counting day itself,” he said. Already, BJP’s Goa election in-charge Devendra Fadnavis has met senior MGP functionary Ramkrishna ‘Sudin’ Dhavalikar.

MGP, which last formed the government in 1977, is trying hard to form the government again. MGP president Pandurang ‘Deepak’ Dhavalikar said that if Sudin is to be considered the next chief minister, MGP has many options, and these would be disclosed on counting day.

“We will meet one day before counting to discuss the post-poll strategy. We will stake a claim for the chief minister’s post if the MGP-TMC alliance secures more than seven seats,” MGP president said.


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