Cong says will not stop those leaving party

TEAM HERALD

teamherald@herald-goa.com

PANJIM: After permanently shutting doors on all its leaders who quit the party ahead of recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, Congress on Tuesday said it will not prevent anyone from shifting their loyalty now after their debacle. 

Goa Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) President John Fernandes statement comes day after its St Cruz MLA Atanasio Monserrate, announced his plans to float a new regional party that will fight the next assembly elections in 2017.

“I have told party high command that we will not take back those who have left the party and now the party is open for all those who want to leave and form new party. They are free to leave, we will not stop them,” Fernandes told Herald from Delhi soon after meeting Congress Goa desk in-charge and AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh. 

“All those leaders who are pointing at failures for the party debacle in the Lok Sabha polls should leave the party. Rather than making anti-party statements and threats, they are free to leave and form another party,” Fernandes said adding that Congress high command including Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have taken collective responsibility of the party’s failure in the Lok Sabha elections. 

The party president this evening submitted detail report on the functioning of the Congress Party during the poll to Singh. The report also consist names of leaders like Churchill Alemao, Shallom Sardinha who left the party and Mauvin Godinho for his anti-party activities. 

Fernandes said that the party’s high command will shortly be in Goa with the disciplinary action committee to probe the allegations of anti-party activities against some of its leaders. Speaking about the poll debacle, Fernandes said ‘there was no specific reason that led to party’s defeat in Goa but a wave created against Congress across India led to the debacle’. “Whatever went wrong with Congress across India went wrong with Congress in Goa too,” he added.  “But yes, in Goa votes were polarized communally by RSS and Sangh Parivar,” the Congress leader commented.