CONG-NCP CEASE FIRE

Government safe, budget will be passed, says GPCC chief
Key issues to be sorted out at next meet on March 31
Churchill apology, leadership change, portfolios discussed

PANJIM, MARCH 21
The political crisis hitting the Digambar Kamat ministry has temporarily blown over as the crucial Congress-NCP Coordination Committee meeting held in Mumbai on Sunday night, virtually agreeing for a ceasefire till March 31, decided to get the Goa Budget for the financial year 2010-11 passed without any major problem.
“There is no problem to the Goa government and the Budget will also be passed smoothly”, President of Goa Pradesh Congress Committee Subhash Shirodkar told Herald after the meeting.
Both Shirodkar and Chief Minister Digambar Kamat also stated that the next Coordination Committee would be held in Mumbai on March 31 when the pending issues would be taken up.
Union Minister for Aviation and NCP’s general secretary Praful Patel in a statement said that all the issues raised by G7 were raised at the coordination committee meeting. “But as we didn’t desire to have financial crisis in Goa if the Budget was not passed, we decided to resolve all the issues on March 31 when the Coordination committee will meet again.”
The Coordination Committee meeting was attended by Praful Patel, general secretary and spokesman Prakash Binsale, Chief Minister Digambar Kamat AICC general secretary B K Hariprasad, Secretary Rajiv Shukla and Subhash Shirodkar.
‘The Group 7 is united and they have decided to amicably resolve the issues raised by them earlier,” Binsale said after reading out the statement of Patel.
 The Coordination Committee after a marathon meeting in Mumbai, discussed all the issues raised by Group of 7 MLAs and there was agreement on various issues, sources said.
Among the issues discussed at the meeting included that of  apology of PWD Minister Churchill Alemao, leadership change, portfolio reshuffle, new corporation chairmanships, budgetary allocations, etc.
All leaders including Binsale declined to elaborate on the issues discussed.
However, sources told Herald that the issue of MLAs making allegations against each other or belittling the other was discussed threadbare. And it was decided that no MLA would make statement against any other or go to the press castigating the other at least till March 31.
They didn’t stop at that. They resolved that strict action would be taken by the respective high commands if the MLAs make statements against the other.
Churchill’s statement describing three MLAs as mosquitoes/musketeers was taken seriously by the NCP.
Sources indicated that the NCP–led G7 has managed to extract assurances from the Congress over various issues and this would be known on March 31 when the coordination committee meets in Mumbai.
It was a day of hectic political activity. Hours after G7 members left for Mumbai, the chief minister and GPCC chief took the late evening flight to attend the coordination committee meeting. Till then the chief minister appeared quite calm and even attended his routine programmes and functions.
Interestingly, Churhcill Alemao also left for Mumbai in the evening triggering speculations that the High Command had called him with regard to his statement castigating the three members of NCP.
Earlier in the day, G7 MLAs had a meeting at Miramar where they reviewed the situation. Most of the members were angry that their main leader Health Minister Vishwajeet Rane had preferred to stay outside the State at a time when they had stepped up their move.
It may be recalled that three days ago, Vishwajeet had left for Kerala, ostensibly on a pilgrimage, and it was not clear when he would return, providing some grist to the rumour mill that he was not being doubted by his colleagues in G7.
A source said that at the Miramar meeting, some members questioned as to why Vishwajeet had preferred to remain out of Goa for the last three days when G7 was taking the government head-on.
Six MLAs of G7 group who were in Goa left for Mumbai in the afternoon to hold talks with NCP central leaders there before the NCP-Congress Coordination Committee meeting. These were Revenue Minister Jose Philip D’Souza who is the leader of the legislative wing of NCP in Goa assembly, Tourism Minister Mickky Pacheco, Tivim MLA Nilakant Halarnkar (all of NCP), Transport Minister Sudin Dhavlikar and his brother Deepak and Education Minister Babush MOnserrate.
While in Mumbai they came to know that Vishwajeet had already reached there and had a meeting with Praful Patel.
Later G7 members held meeting with Patel and Binsale before the crucial Coordination committee meeting.