PANJIM: With the uncertainty over whether the State will go for by-elections in two constituencies or for mid-term polls, Congress has said that they will announce their candidates for Shiroda and Mandrem Assembly constituencies, at the right time.
Speaking to media persons, Congress president Girish Chodankar said they have many candidates for Shiroda and Mandrem but would not like to announce their names now.
“We have adopted wait and watch approach. There is so much uncertainty as whether there would be only by-elections in two places or State will go for mid-term polls. So we are waiting. We will announce our candidates accordingly,” he stated.
The by-elections for Shiroda and Mandrem are likely to be held next month. Former Congress MLAs Subhash Shirodkar and Dayanand Sopte had resigned from the party in October last year and joined BJP.
Chodankar said that ‘the voting for the by-elections will be to defeat these two Congress defectors’. “There is still anger and frustration and it will be open during the election,” he said, adding that the party is currently working on building the organisation in both constituencies.
Meanwhile, days after BJP accused the Congress of sabotaging attempts to resume iron ore mining in Goa by not allowing Parliament to function, the latter, in a counter attack said that the Central government has no “willingness” to restart the industry.
Addressing media persons on Friday, Congress Thivim MLA Nilkant Halarnkar said, “Central government has no willingness to restart mining activities. If they were really interested, it would have happened by now. Ten months have passed, what is that Central leadership still examining? They are not serious at all.”
Halarnkar even took dig at the three BJP MPs, including Union Minister for AYUSH, Shripad Naik stating, “What have they done? Every time you ask them, they say…yes we are following up…they (Centre) are doing it. Look at the audacity”.
“It was shame for Union Minister to sit in the protest (mining dependents) which was held against his own government,” he said.
