TEAM HERALD
MARGAO: In an apparent bid to rejuvenate the sagging morale of the party rank and file, the Goa Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) will hold its first ever meeting in Margao on February 20, but an air of uncertainty prevails amongst party leaders and workers over the choice of party candidate for the South Goa seat — whether it’s sitting MP Francisco Sardinha or AICC general secretary Luizinho Faleiro.
This question is expected to take the centre stage in the next two days as the AICC general secretary in-charge of Goa desk, Digvijay Singh is scheduled to visit Goa and is expected to attend the PCC meeting in Margao on Thursday.
Sources in the party said that Congress workers are a confused lot over the choice of party candidate for the South Goa seat, with party leaders refraining from dropping any hints over the party nominee.
The question figured prominently at the executive committee of the South Goa District Congress when the district President Subhash Faldesai was flooded with queries from the members over the choice of the Lok sabha candidate.
They demanded to know from the district President over the party’s delay in projecting a leader as the probable candidate when the BJP has gone a step ahead in publicly projecting Goa Law Commission Chairman Narendra Sawaikar as the party nominee for South Goa.
Sources said an embarrassed Faldesai wriggled out of the situation by saying that the district Committee has already recommended the names of four probable – Francisco Sardinha, Luizinho Faleiro, Churchill Alemao and Ravi Naik – for the party ticket.
Luizinho Faleiro’s repeated announcement ruling out his candidature for the South Goa seat has not helped remove the air of uncertainty amongst the party workers. A district leader opined that the state party leadership or the AICC general secretary should help clear the confusion given that the Lok Sabha poll is less than 100 days away from now.
Sources in the know said that sitting MP Francisco Sardinha is planning to visit the Assembly segments in his South Goa Lok Sabha constituency after putting in place core party workers – indicating that the sitting MP is bracing up for re-nomination by the party to contest from coming poll from South Goa.
