Team Herald
PANJIM: With Congress leaders canvassing for a grand alliance with like-minded parties for the 2017 State Assembly elections, the party has decided to call for a joint meeting of the Pradesh Committee and the Legislative wing to decide on this.
The meeting on July 18, to be chaired by party president Luizinho Faleiro, would be the opposition party’s first to decide on the poll strategy. Members of the block, district and State committees would also participate in the meeting.
Sources said the meeting will resolve whether the party should form a grand alliance with other parties and individuals for the 2017 elections. “The MLAs are in complete favour of a grand alliance while Pradesh committee members are reluctant. They want the party to go all alone,” sources said.
“The decision will be conveyed to All India Pradesh Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary and Goa desk in-charge Digvijay Singh,” sources said adding, “Singh has already announced that the party will contest all 40 seats alone.”
Former health minister and Valpoi MLA Vishwajit Rane was the first to speak in favour of a grand alliance. He has even threatened to quit the party if Congress goes it alone in the 2017 polls. However, his father and senior most Congressman, Pratapsingh Rane, was not in favour of an alliance.
Vishwajit managed to get support from colleagues including former chief minister Digambar Kamat, MLAs Jennifer Monserrate, Pandurang Madkaikar and Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco who supported the alliance.
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NCP asks AAP to join alliance
VASCO: Calling the Congress Party as big brother, the president of State Nationalist Party (NCP) Jose Philip D’Souza has appealed to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) as well as Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) to join Mahagatbandhan which according to him is the need of the hour to throw BJP out of power. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a press conference in Vasco on Friday, D’ Souza claimed that all national parties, including the Congress and AAP besides the regional parties state of Goa including MGP, United Goans Democratic Party (UGDP), Goa Forward, and other like-minded parties from state should come together and become a part of Mahagatbandhan to ensure that all secular votes should not get divided.
