PANJIM: All that remained sweet at the end of the meeting of BJP MLAs and senior office bearers was the birthday cake that Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar offered to Cortalim MLA and Environment Minister Alina Saldanha. The meeting ended with a teary-eyed Alina storming out, furious at the party allotting the Sancoale Zilla Panchayat seat in her area of influence to the MGP. She left saying she felt humiliated and insulted by the party top brass, singling out General Secretary Satish Dhond. She left threatening that she would field an independent candidate in Sancoale against the alliance MGP candidate. (See accompanying story too from Cortalim).
According to three MLAs, who were eyewitnesses to the incident, the events unfolded as follows. The session started with the Chief Minster asking for suggestions from MLAs on the budget. This went on for over an hour when the next item on the agenda, the ZP elections was taken up. As soon as this was done Alina Saldanha got up to express her displeasure at the Sancoale seat, which is her domain, allotted to the MGP without consulting her. She reportedly accused South Goa MP Narendra Sawaikar of plotting behind the scenes along with her arch rival Ramakant Borkar to sideline her interests. “Why are you humiliating me? Who is doing these things”, she reportedly said and added that every day there was “interference” in her constituency.
According to the eyewitnesses, as shocked MLAs including the Chief Minister tried to pacify her, the teary-eyed Alina sobbed, “The party is doing this to woman and a widow. My husband (the late Matanhy Saldanha) joined the BJP only because of Parrikar and not any of you”. At this Chief Minister Parsekar intervened “You are my Cabinet colleague, you should not speak like this”. At this stage the situation took a turn for the worse with sharp exchanges wherein the CM too raised his voice.
At this point General Secretary Satish Dhond, couldn’t take it anymore and entered the ring and sought to put Alina Saldanha in her place. He said that the seat allotment was a part of the seat-sharing formula. He also said that the party had managed to maintain the alliance with the MGP and other allies and that was commendable.
According to the eyewitness MLAs, Dhond then reportedly said, “You have not contested elections and gone door to door for votes. That is why you have no idea what an election is”.
At this Alina retorted, “Why didn’t you tell me you had a problem getting me unopposed? I did not ask you. I would have fought the elections and won. This is all drama”.
She then began to leave, crying, her birthday clearly spoilt. At this point gentlemen MLAs, Vasco MLA Carlos Almeida and Calangute MLA Michael Lobo, got up to calm her down, but BJP’s lone lady MLA would have none of it. She left in rage threatening to go to the press, and also field her own candidate from Sancoale which for the record she hasn’t.
The incident has certainly left a bitter taste in the mouth for Alina, the minister who found herself in an unfriendly ‘environment’. It’s clear that in the BJP, not everyone can have their cake, and eat it too.
