If there’s an unlikely alliance BJP and MGP won’t take off in Dabolim
NAVIN JHA
The alliance is gone. But Dabolim will ensure that it becomes the flashpoint of an open acrimonious battle between the BJP and MGP
Since the time MGP lost 2012 assembly polls, the workers from both these parties (BJP and MGP) started maintaining distance from its ally locally and now after former Dabolim MLA Mauvin Godinho ceremoniously entered into BJP, their fight has fuelled further.
In order to understand the mood of voters from Dabolim on the current political situation between MGP and BJP, Herald did a ground report and found that even if BJP and MGP decide to enter into alliance for the 2017 polls, the workers from both these parties would not work for the alliance candidate and would actually sabotage prospects of each other’s candidate.
“Though we supported MGP candidate Premanand Nanoskar in 2012 elections, her started working against the BJP and fielded his candidate against BJP-backed candidate in the Panchayat elections. He even supported rival candidate from Congress during 2014 Lok Sabha elections and thus we have been demanding that this time we want our party candidate from Dabolim as we cannot support MGP’s candidate anymore,” said Santosh Kerkar, a BJP leader of Dabolim.
Interestingly supporters of both the parties claimed that they enjoy support of majority in Dabolim. BJP supporters claim that BJP has over 6000 fixed votes in Dabolim constituency. Besides that Dabolim has majority of Hindu voters and this factor would be very crucial and would surely reflect in the voting pattern in 2017 polls, supporters said.
On the other hand MGP supporters don’t want to open their cards by revealing their numbers of supporters but claim to have enough support from the voters. “Our candidate Premanand Nanoskar enjoys personal rapport with large number of voters across Dabolim constituency. Though he lost 2012 assembly election he still has not stopped taking up projects and has actually performed well. Also if we look at the history then Dabolim is MGP fortress. This time more than party symbol, personal contacts would help the candidate to win,” said Vinod Kinlekar from New Vaddem.
On the face of it local BJP leaders are happy with the decision of their party to induct former Congress MLA from Dabolim Mauvin Godinho into the saffron group. But this optimism has been completely offset by the very open and vocal opposition to Godinho’s induction by party Vice president and NRI Commissioner Wilfred Mesquita, who said, on the day of Godinho’s joining the BJP as the party’s ”blackest day”.
However, MGP’s local unit is equally saddened with the BJP move.
While the supporters of both parties are patting their back with tall claims of enjoying support of majority, the locals and mainly the silent voters are still confused as to who to support. For them local BJP as well as MGP leaders have been acting and even fighting like enemies since 2012. Some of them said that the forthcoming assembly elections would not be and easy affair for BJP as well as MGP and many voters are clearly at sea.
“Some days back BJP and MGP were together, now they are acting like enemies. If today we support MGP openly then the BJP supporters will get annoyed and vice versa. I feel that under present scenario it is very difficult to decide on whom to vote or even support,” said Prakash Bhagat, a Dabolim resident.
Some silent voters claimed that voting this time will be based on various aspects and mainly on the performance by the candidates in the last five years. “We are going to vote for the candidate who has performed well. No doubt, Godinho as MLA has successfully completed majority of the projects proposed by him. However, Nanoskar has also tried to take up works with the help from MGP leader and former PWD Minister Ramakrishna, alias Sudin Dhavalikar, thus still there is some confusion as to whom to vote or to go for some other candidate” said a New Vaddem based shopkeeper who wished not to be named.
But one thing is clear. If Mauvin Godinho felt that switching parties was like switching SIM cards and moving to another operator, he will soon know that connectivity (with voters) will still not be seamless.
