Team Herald
PANJIM: Using the mining issue as its weapon to target the BJP, the Congress has taken a potshot at the ruling party for sidelining its senior leader Shripad Naik who belongs to the Bahujan Samaj.
“The government has only closed the doors for resolving the mining issue. Around 90-95 per cent mining dependents are from the Bahujan Samaj and we know that Naik always works for the welfare of his people in Goa. But he is being sidelined by his own party just the way BJP has sidelined its veterans like Lal Krishna Advani and Yashwant Sinha,” Congress legislator Nilkanth Halarnkar told a press conference on Monday.
The party also cited on how the coalition partners are taking a route through union ministers like Suresh Prabhu and Nitin Gadkari to fix an appointment with Prime Minister Narendra Modi for resolving the mining crisis, but none are seeking help of the North Goa Lok Sabha MP.
During the last CLP meeting, Halarnkar had alleged that the Modi-led government has no willingness to restart the industry, which is shut for last ten months.
“Central government has no willingness to restart mining activities. If they were really interested, it would have happened by now. Ten months have passed, what is the Central leadership still examining? They are not serious at all,” the MLA charged.
Congress’ soft corner for Shripad Naik was evident during its last press conference when its spokesperson Siddhanath Buyao sought ‘any senior leader’ or Naik to be handed over the charge of Goa Chief Minister.
