Team Herald
PANJIM: Caretaker chief minister Dr Pramod Sawant was on Monday elected leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party and will be sworn in as chief minister for a second term, putting to rest all speculation over any change in leadership.
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After a marathon meeting with each BJP MLA, followed by the legislature party meeting, BJP Central Observer and Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar announced to the media that the party has unanimously approved Sawant as Goa chief minister.
The party’s ‘first choice’ Sawant will be the leader of the Legislature Party for the next five years, Tomar said, ending any speculation that he may be replaced after the 2024 Lok Sabha Polls.
“The Legislature Party meeting unanimously decided to make Dr Pramod Sawant as the CM. (Valpoi MLA) Vishwajit Rane proposed Dr Pramod Sawant’s name which was seconded by elected MLAs Ravi Naik, Mauvin Godinho, Nilesh Cabral, Rohan Khaunte, and others,” Tomar said while addressing the press conference after a meeting that went for over two hours.
During the meeting chaired by the Tomar and co-observer (union minister) L Murugan, election in-charge Devendra Fadnavis, desk in-charge C T Ravi and State BJP President Sadanand Shet Tanavade among other senior leaders, the MLAs were asked if they recommend an alternate name for the post of CM. Tomar told the media that the MLAs said they “unanimously” propose Sawant hold a second term as Goa’s CM.
In his first media address on being re-elected as CM, Sawant said he will carry forward the overall development of Goa including Swayampurna Goa 2.0.
Interestingly, CM-aspirant Viswajit Rane proposed Sawant’s name for the post. Rane’s meetings last week with Goa Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai at Raj Bhavan and then Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi amid a delay in government formation had fuelled speculation that he was strengthening his position as a frontrunner to the top post in the government.
The legislator’s MLA wife, Deviya Rane, a first-timer in the Legislative Assembly had indirectly hinted at a change in leadership during the swearing in of MLAs last week.
