Pratapsingh Raoji Rane (born 28 January 1939) is an Indian politician from the state of Goa and former Leader Of Opposition in the Goa state assembly. He has served as the Chief Minister of Goa six times – from 1980 to 1985, 1985 to 1989, for three months in 1990, from 1994 to 1999, a month in 2005 and finally in 2005–07.
Rane has been a member of the Indian National Congress since the mid-1970s, and was earlier a prominent figure in the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party. In the MGP, he was minister for law and also held other portfolios, in the term beginning 1972.
Rane became chief minister after the Congress’s first-ever win in Goa in 1980 mainly as a “consensus candidate”, after a bitter battle for the top political slot between the then two Congress heavyweights, Dr Wilfred de Souza and Anant Narcinva Naik, also known as Babu Naik. Naik was subsequently largely marginalised in state politics, while Souza served under Rane in some of his cabinets.
After 5 years of BJP rule, Rane began his fifth term as chief minister in February 2005 after the government fell due to a split in the Goa BJP. A month later, however, the state was put under president’s rule for three months. Rane then served as chief minister for the sixth time, for two years until the June 2007 state elections. Though the Congress Party and its allies won a comfortable majority, Rane was forced to step aside as chief minister due to infighting within the state Congress party, and was forced to step aside in favor of a neutral candidate, Digambar Kamat. Rane was, however, elected speaker of the state assembly when it reconvened a few days later.
Controversies
After the BJP attempted a “show of strength” to take over the Goa house, they were stifled by Rane. The BJP accused Rane of acting in a partisan manner to protect the Congress led government.[1]
He has also been accused by businessman Bhalchandra Naik for demanding Rs 10 Crore for being granted Environmental clearance for a mine, of which Rs 6 Crore had been paid to his son Vishwajit Rane, MLA from Valpoi
Recently Into a controversy for calling Goans in UK as toilet cleaners.
