PANJIM: Close on the heels of the Election Commission of India (ECI) deciding to delete the names of Goans, who opted for foreign nationality from the electoral rolls, the Congress Party on Thursday demanded dual citizenship for Goans.
“We would like to demand dual citizenship for Goa. The concept exists in Pondicherry… the same should be replicated for Goa,” Congress president Luizinho Faleiro told media persons.
Faleiro said the Congress will approach the ECI demanding that the voting rights of Goans, who have registered their birth in Lisbon in Portugal be protected. “There are thousands of innocent people who had registered their birth in Portugal – a provision offered by the State’s former colonial rulers to those born before Goa’s liberation in 1961 and to their children. These are innocent people and must be given protection,” he said.
In South Goa alone, 25,700 names of Goans who have ceased to be Indian nationals have been deleted in last five years. The government has now sought details from various embassies in India of persons who have opted for foreign nationality.
The Congress’ Global Goans Chamber of Commerce (GGCC) has also decided to petition the Supreme Court praying to grant voting rights to those people who have registered their birth in Lisbon.
Meanwhile, reacting to the ASSOCHAM study on investments, Faleiro said the report has authenticated that the BJP-led government has failed to govern the State. “I am not at all surprised with the report of ASSOCHAM. They have said exactly what we had said in the past quoting the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) report on the State’s financial position and debt trap,” he stated. The former Chief Minister said that the current State of affairs is very “frightening”.
The ASSOCHAM study finds that new investments growth rate has dipped to 9 percent from over 91 percent in 2015-16.
