PANJIM/MARGAO: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders in the State seem to be wary of defection of former Chief Minister and Margao MLA Digambar Kamat given the latter’s popularity and possibility of becoming a power centre within the BJP.
Kamat had been a number two in the erstwhile BJP government before he quit complaining that he was suffocating in the saffron party and rejoined Congress. He had won three Assembly elections on BJP symbol. In the 2007 polls, Kamat sprang a surprise by becoming the Chief Minister of the Congress-led government in the State. Surviving many toppling bids, he completed his five-year term.
Though the BJP high command is inclined to admit Kamat and his men, the State BJP leaders are adopting a cautious approach. They fear that if admitted, Kamat’s growing clout within the BJP could make him a strong contender for the coveted post in future.
Vinod Shirodkar, a close aide of Kamat told Herald that they are hapless if their MLA decides to join the BJP. According to him, Kamat had held his workers meeting a couple of months back in order to ascertain the views of his workers and supporters on his move to switch over.
Shirodkar said that they all had given green signal to him on one condition that he needed to do something good for the Margao constituency and to the people in general. At the same time, he cautioned that the Congress legislator should not forget the oath taken before the Almighty that they would be stay united and not defect come what may.
Former Margao councillor Damodar Naik, who is also one of the close aides of Kamat said that they had no issue about their leader rejoining the BJP and it was purely for the development of aiming to develop the Margao constituency.
Naik too admitted that the defection storm that hit the grand old party means that the political leaders have no fear of God, even after taking oath in the temple, church and mosque.
However, BJP leaders and workers from Margao have their reservations to Kamat’s joining to the party. They still recall Kamat ditching the BJP and the then Chief Minister late Manohar Parrikar. They say that that it is up to the party leaders to welcome rebel Congress MLAs into the BJP though the party is already enjoying majority. BJP leaders also need to follow and maintain the discipline, feels the cadre.
“In Margao we had always opposed Digambar Kamat for several reasons,” says BJP office-bearer Sharmad Raiturkar, who was pitted against Kamat twice.
Agreeing with Raiturkar, another BJP leader Ketan Kurtarkar said that party leaders need to take workers into confidence before inducting Kamat into the party.
“The sentiments of the workers need to be respected, because we are answerable to the people and the voters,” Kurtarkar said.
