PANJIM, APRIL 6
It was like a T-20 match. There were many fours and sixes but ultimately it seems they couldn’t survive the war of attrition.
The Group of Seven (G7) non-Congress MLAs of the ruling dispensation, who had pushed the Digambar Kamat government to a brink of crisis, appeared crestfallen on Tuesday as the NCP central leadership cold-shouldered them.
After flexing their muscles for quite sometime now, G7 lost their punch on Tuesday as the Congress managers seemed to have succeeded in their strategies.
As reported yesterday, G7 MLAs had rushed to Mumbai for a meeting with NCP leader and Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel in a bid to put pressure on the Congress to accede to their demands.
There were speculations till Monday evening that they might even withdraw support to the Kamat-led ministry – a situation which the Congress think-tank was preparing to face.
So how did the situation suddenly change?
According to sources, meticulous planning stole the show for the Congress. After Ahmad Patel was briefed about the situation vis-à-vis G7’s belligerent stand, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi is understood to have spoken to NCP supremo Sharad Pawar to ensure that his (three) MLAs wouldn’t rock the boat.
Accordingly, Praful Patel who was to meet G7 for which the MLAs had specially gone to Mumbai, (and who was seen as a G7 sympathiser) had to change his plans.
G7 members were kept waiting for long and ultimately the meeting never took place. Sources said Patel’s PA informed them that he was busy in his constituency which couldn’t be confirmed.
In the meantime, the chief minister’s office informed the ministers (five of whom are part of G7) of an emergency cabinet meeting scheduled on Tuesday at 10 am. G7 initially decided not to attend the meeting. In other words, it was a second Cabinet meeting they wanted to boycott.
What also put them on the defensive was Chief Minister’s scheduled appointment with the Governor at 10.45 am, after the Cabinet meeting.
But when the signal went out, Praful Patel – with directions from his boss – apparently asked the G7 members to attend the Cabinet meeting saying the issue of dissolution of the assembly was likely to be raised.
All the G7 members (except Vishwajit Rane) who are against dissolution flew by the early morning Jet Airways flight, to attend the Cabinet meeting.
Incidentally, PWD Minister Churchill Alemao said that the issue of dissolution, though earlier planned, was not taken up as the G7 ministers attended the cabinet.
ON THEIR KNEES? Back in Goa, the G7 members today seemed to have mellowed down their stance of threat to withdraw support to the Digambar Kamat-led government saying they will wait for the Congress High Command to get back to them on their demands.
The group also did not want to comment anything on the dissolution issue saying it is uncalled for.
“Dissolution would be an unnecessary step,” NCP legislature party leader Jose Philip D’Souza told reporters here after the emergency Cabinet meeting held at the secretariat.
“Why talk about dissolution? Our high command is meeting with Sonia Gandhi later tonight,” he said adding “…they will discuss and find a suitable solution; we have placed our demands before them.”
NOW WILLING TO WAIT! Asked whether they are ready to wait for more time for the Congress High Command to accept their demands, he replied, “We will have to wait.”
On any decision of withdrawing support, he simply said “let’s not talk that now.”
None of the other G7 members wanted to speak to media.
To a query on change in their stance to attend the Cabinet meeting after they had said they would not attend, D’Souza simply refused to comment.
GROUPS WITHIN G7? As reported earlier in the newspaper, there were major differences of opinion among members of G7 over 2-3 issues. Nonetheless, they always put up a united front. Jose Philip D’Souza always maintained that they were together as one force.
Indications on Tuesday, however, were that there were two groups. Transport Minister Sudin Dhavlikar however, has strongly refuted the claim. “This is totally wrong. We are very much together,” he said.
Putting up a brave front, he said they have not lost the battle. By the week-end or so, some decision will be taken, he said. In fact, the G7 minus Vishwajit, after the Cabinet, took stock of the situation at Dhavlikar’s official bungalow at Altinho.
By noon, there was jubilation in Kamat’s camp as their plan had gone through, after days of fighting the battle on the quite.
President of Goa Pradesh Congress Committee Subhash Shirodkar was all smiles as from Day 1 he had refused to recognise G7 saying they would not be able to destabilise the government.
