The BJP appears to have clearly kept out contentious issues which might affect their chances, totally out of the poll picture, preferring to pitch their social welfare schemes and their infrastructure projects to over ride popular concerns over U-turns, the non- implementation of the Regional Plan and the failure to move casinos out of the Mandovi river.
Chief Minister Parsekar, speaking to Herald in the first a series of interviews with major party leaders, ‘IN CONVERSATION’, did not deny that casinos have indeed not been moved out of the Mandovi and that the Regional Plan is still in an absolute limbo.
Therefore the government is clearly facing up to issues of serious concern by putting them on priority in accordance with their electoral importance. While this might work as strategy, it doesn’t augur well for the state simply because, there is a sense of right and wrong, and you cannot take leave of those senses, just because they are not, in the collective wisdom, ‘poll issues’.
The absence of the Regional Plan still is a fundamental flaw our system and logically speaking, all construction should have been frozen, till the held Regional Plan was de-notified and a new one introduced. Relying on the match of land use patterns between RP 2000, and the kept in abeyance, RP 2021 for all projects was and will not be practical anyway. This is fundamental to Goa’s planning and must be viewed that way, beyond the scope of elections. The BJP’s justification is that the issue can continue to be on the back burner since it isn’t affecting too many people.
On the issue of offshore casinos, an ambivalent stand will not be acceptable. Either the government should go with the Chief Minsters stand in the interview with Herald, that revenue implications make it totally impractical to remove them and learn to live with the implications of that decision, or take steps for the removal of the casino boats from the Mandovi. What is not acceptable is no action on the issue because it not a poll issue.
The moot point here is that the focus on infrastructure and welfare schemes will not be diluted, if the casino and Regional Plan concerns are addressed in a parallel manner, without making them or seeming to make them poll issues.
But to the people of Goa, the non-implementation of these, become an added spoke in the wheel of disbelief, and this is something that no government will accept or be comfortable with.
The sad irony here is that that welfare scheme beneficiary will not ask the party questions on casinos and the Regional Plan. The BJP’s internal survey’s, (several of them have been done) have depicted that the recall of these contentious issues among large sections of people below a certain income level, is pretty low. Which is why, they have zeroed in on welfare schemes which will impact voting directly among a far greater section of the population.
At the same time the infrastructure spin will work, both with the upper middle class to the rich as well as be a feel good actor for the low income group.
As a poll strategy the BJP has got it in place, but as a people strategy, this will add to the trust deficit. But that’s for later. An election needs to be won.
