At least 10 BJP MLAs would have gone home if RG had not sent them to the Assembly

Team Herald

PANJIM: The biggest hidden story of the just-concluded 2022 elections lies in the ECI charts showing the votes of each candidate in every constituency. Without mixing any words, lets us state plain facts. At least ten BJP MLAs would have lost if the Revolutionary Goans Party did not garner anti-BJP votes in almost 50% of the constituencies. So the BJP would have got 10 or less than 10 seats and could not have formed the government. Other non-BJP parties, mainly the Congress would have got those votes and seats.

The strong murmur which was always there that the RG was a B team of the BJP backed in every which way has become a strong voice. And all the talk around RG’s sudden rise, its spending power on the back of donations from Londoners have grown stronger due to the sheer number of votes got by its candidates amounting to almost 10 of the votes polled.

Former MLA Herculano Dourado said, “RG is not a political party at all. They don’t have a political background. It an offshoot of the BJP and came into existence to only split votes. RG is right-left-centre hand of RSS. The funds for RG are through Goans working abroad.” 

Cansaulim local Viana Fernandes said, “RG has taken a lot of votes from our area. Cortalim people and other Goans living abroad have donated money to RG, because RG portrayed a picture of doing things for Goa. NRI Goans began donating huge funds. Why is Manoj Parab fooling Goans? He should speak the truth. Don’t target poor migrants. A major chunk of Goa has been concretised and migrants are not owning it. Land sharks, hoteliers, and others who have changed the face of Goa which is not in its own interest.” 

Activist Joaquim D’Silva former activist from Cansaulim working in US said RG is a B-team of BJP. It contested the polls to split votes. “Manoj Parab got donations from Goans living abroad but going the wrong way. We Goans in other countries are not treated as migrants so why others in Goa are treated as migrants? RG is silent on land sharks, hoteliers, corporates and politicians who are actually destroying.”

Adv Radharao Gracias, however, had a more amenable take on the party. “RG has come out better than AAP and TMC who spent a lot of money. They are financed by Goans living abroad and since the latter have seen a different administration in Europe, they probably want to do something for Goa. That is not bad.”  

RG got 92,257 votes in almost equal portions in North and South Goa far ahead of AAP’s 54,000 plus and TMC’s 49,000 plus. These are staggering figures for a party that again surprisingly got its election symbol in record quick time after it decided to contest under the banner of Goa Su-Raj Party which was registered. Goa Su-Raj Party, had alleged that the Revolutionary Goans and Election Commission had betrayed by allotting its symbol Football to RG, thereby setting the ball rolling for its totally unexpected success.

But who got an even bigger success? The BJP

There are at least 10 BJP MLAs and one Independent who would have not won if it had not been for the split votes of RG.

They are: Pramod Sawant, Ravi Naik, Nilkanth Halarnkar, Nilesh Cabral, Jennifer Monserrate, Premendra Shet, Pravin Arlekar, Subhash Phaldesai, Ulhas Tuenkar, Joshua D Souza.

NAVELIM: Congress with 3,716 votes could have defeated the winning BJP candidate Ulhas Tuenkar who got 5,084 votes, if the RGP had not eaten into 2,068 votes. The Trinamool came second with 4,682 votes here.

CURTORIM: Congress could have given its former MLA and now Independent legislator Reginaldo Lourenco a run for his votes if the RGP’s 3,423 votes and AAP’s 2,714 votes could have been clubbed to give it the momentum it needed. And who did Reginaldo eventually offer support to – the BJP, almost a foregone conclusion.

PONDA: This is a classic case where RG came fourth but its votes could have made either MGP or Congress win. But who won Ravi Naik of BJP by a mere 77 votes.

TIVIM: RGP got 4,959 votes, TMC 7,172 votes while the BJP got 9,190. The TMC was well on course to win this seat but BJP’s Nilkanth Halarnkar won.

CURCHOREM: Congress candidate Amit Parkar got 9,301 votes and was well on road to victory. But RG’s 2,103 votes did enough to lessen Congress votes, making BJP’s Nilesh Cabral win by 672 votes.

MAPUSA: Joshua D’Souza of BJP got a little over 10,195 votes while the Congress candidate got 8,548 The RG got about 1,000 votes. If the RG was out of the system (the TMC also split votes here) the Congress would have been through.

TALEIGAO: BJP’s Jennifer Monserrate scraped through with 1,604 votes more than the Congress; the RGP got 1,628. 

MAYEM: BJP’s Premendra Shet cruised through with 7,874 votes, as opposed to Congress ally Goa Forward Party’s 4,738 votes – the RGP took away 3,974 votes. 

SANQUELIM: Chief Minister Pramod Sawant won by 381 votes against the Congress; Dharmesh Saglani the RGP took away 740. 

PERNEM: BJP’s Pravin Arlekar won by a margin of 3,288 votes defeating the MGP; the RGP got 2,755 votes.

SANGUEM: BJP rebel and Independent candidate Savitri Kavlekar got 7,295 votes while the BJP got 8,724, a margin of 1,429 votes. Here, the RG got 1,500 votes. If this was added to Savitri’s kitty she would have been an MLA and not BJP’s Subhash Phaldesai.

While RG has sent one MLA to the Assembly and some of its supporters are saying that a new party has arrived, the statistics of so many constituencies where the elections have gone in favour of the BJP due to RG are too many and too evident.