TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: The Bharatiya Janata Party rubbished speculation about snapping ties with its ally, the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), saying that the alliance is strong and the Zilla Panchayat polls would be fought in alliance. MGP too echoed the same view with PWD Minister Ramkrishna (Sudin) Dhavalikar also asserting that the alliance was firm.
The BJP has also sent Siddharth Kunkolienkar’s name to its Parliamentary board as the party candidate for the Panaji by-polls.
Emerging from the meeting of BJP legislators and party workers on Tuesday, party State President Vinay Tendulkar conceded that some were not happy with the functioning of a senior MGP minister citing lack of developmental activities carried out by him. But he went on to add, “There are no differences with the MGP. We had a pre-poll alliance with them and it will not cease till the end of the current tenure. There are complaints by few party legislators that their developmental works are not being undertaken by the PWD. But that does not mean we will break the alliance.”
He denied having any discussion on the alliance issue, but said that when the topic would come up, the party’s decision would be final. He also said the party had formed a 13-member election committee to plan strategies for the Panaji by-polls and ZP elections. Tendulkar himself would be heading the committee.
Another meeting of the party workers will be addressed by chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar on Wednesday.
On the by-polls candidate, Tendulkar said, “The Board will approve the name of Kunkolienkar since his is the only name unanimously suggested. The decision will come tomorrow (Wednesday).”
