Team Herald
PANJIM: Congress on Wednesday reiterated its demand before Goa Governor Dr Mridula Sinha to direct the ruling coalition led by the BJP to elect a new leader for the State in the absence of Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, who is currently undergoing treatment in USA.
Goa Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) President Girish Chodankar also petitioned the Governor to re-convene the Assembly to consider the Budget presented in the House in February 2018.
This is the second appeal to the Governor by the Congress. The first on April 16 had demanded that all decisions taken by the government in the absence of the Chief Minister, except those on humanitarian grounds, be quashed and set aside as administrative powers accorded to the Cabinet Advisory Committee (CAC) are unconstitutional.
“Your kind attention is drawn to the fact that former MP Shantaram Naik by letter dated April 16 had, inter alia, sought your intervention in the matter of absence of Chief Minister to aid and advise you as required under Article 163 of Constitution of India,” Chodankar said in his letter on Wednesday.
Chodankar emphasized that the Constitutional mandate of Article 163 stands violated. “Chief Minister is for the last several months unable to aid and advise you in any manner on account of his ailment. Therefore there is complete breakdown of constitutional machinery in the State of Goa,” he said.
He said that the State’s economy is under severe threat and law and order is equally bad and there is administrative collapse.
