Congress leaders must be prepared to make sacrifices and compromis es in the larger interest of the party and put internal differences behind them ahead of the 2027 Assem bly elections, Leader of Opposition and Congress Campaign Committee chairman Yuri Alemao has said. Speaking exclusively to O Heraldo, Alemao sought to downplay the reported differences between for mer GPCC president Amit Patkar and current State Congress president Girish Chodankar, saying differ ences of opinion were nat ural in a democratic polit ical party but should not become a public spectacle. “Sacrifices have to be made, or compromises have to be made, in the interest of the party. What ever needs to be done, I am sure, will be done quickly,” Alemao said.
His remarks come at a time when the relationship be tween Patkar and Chodankar has come under increasing political scrutiny. Recent reports have highlighted tensions between the two leaders, including over a Public Accounts Committee meeting. Alemao, however, refused to comment on the views or positions of individual leaders, stressing that his respon sibility as Campaign Committee chairman was to take the party and its campaign to the people. “Both are a part of the Congress party. One is an ex-PCC president, and one is the current president,” he said. According to Alemao, the immediate priority should be to ensure that Congress remains united and focuses on issues af fecting Goa, rather than allowing internal differences to domi nate the public discourse. He said the party’s proposed Goem Rakhon Yatra, which will cover all 40 Assembly constituencies, would provide an opportunity to reconnect with people and strengthen the or ganisation at the grassroots. “All 40 constituencies will be part of this historic yatra,” Ale mao said, adding that he was confident that the issues within the organisation would be addressed as the party takes its campaign to the ground. Alemao also rejected the description of the situation as an internal crisis. “There are no issues. As I have said publicly also, there are differences of opinion.
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There are no issues. And in a political setup, these things are there,” he said. The Leader of Opposition said such differences tend to sur face more prominently as elections approach, but maintained that Congress had a much larger political objective before it. Congress, he said, must look beyond individual differences and concentrate on presenting itself as a united alternative to the BJP in the 2027 elections. “My focus, if you tell me, is very clear, ‘Amche lakshya’ is to make sure that the BJP is sent home in 2027,” Alemao said. He also warned Congress workers and leaders against what he described as attempts by the BJP to divide the opposition party. “Yes, there will definitely be attempts by the BJP to try to divide everyone. That is their policy, so we should not fall prey to such type of things,” he said. Alemao’s comments come as Congress begins prepara tions for the next Assembly election, with the party seeking to strengthen its organisational structure and grassroots pres ence.
The Congress high command recently made organisa tional changes in Goa, with Yuri Alemao being given charge of the Campaign Committee. The Campaign Committee chairman said his approach would be to listen to people and party workers and take them into confidence as Congress prepares for its statewide cam paign. For Alemao, the message is clear: whatever differences exist between leaders must be settled within the party, while the larger battle for Goa should remain the focus. “The Congress party is a democratic party where everyone can express their views, their likes and dislikes. But one needs to understand that this should not be shown in the public do main,” he said. With the 2027 elections approaching, Alemao’s call for compromise puts the spotlight on whether the Congress lead ership can turn its internal differences into organisational unity before taking its campaign to all 40 constituencies.
