Team Herald
NEW DELHI: PWD Minister Ramakrishna (Sudin) Dhavalikar of the MGP, quietly visited the All India Congress Committee (AICC) headquarters here amid fears in his party that the chief minister is plotting to dissolve the Assembly early next month to prevent any coup by the Congress and pave way for elections along with the Lok Sabha polls.
The development shows Goa may plunge into political uncertainty that the BJP wanted to avoid by keeping Parrikar in the saddle as a magnet to the allies to keep the party otherwise in minority in the 40-member Assembly with just 14 MLAs, three of whom are in hospitals.
The Congress has been already working on the BJP’s allies and independents and it even petitioned the Goa Governor for a trial of strength by calling an Assembly session. Its leaders say any threat of the Assembly dissolution will work in their favour as nobody wants early elections as the present House was elected only in February last year.
Parrikar, who is in AIIMS here since September 15, had last month sought to step down, before being flown to Delhi, in view of his health not improving due to pancreatic ailment, but the BJP leadership decided to let him continue as the chief minister after sensing a revolt if someone else is brought in his place. Dhavalikar is upset since then as Parrikar backed out after promising to make him the deputy chief minister.
