PANJIM: Some leaders belonging to the Scheduled Tribes (ST) communities in the State want nothing but a final notification reserving four Assembly seats even as Chief Minister Pramod Sawant claimed that notification constituting Delimitation Commission before announcement of Lok Sabha polls schedule.
The ST leaders who were not part of the delegation said that it was an effort to buy time before the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and the solution for the issue is the using of a final notification declaring that four seats have been reserved for the ST communities in the State.
Ramkrishna Jalmi said, ”High Court as well as the Supreme Court have already ordered the government to notify the reservation for the ST community. But BJP did nothing. How can we believe on these oral assurances?. Ahead of Karnataka Assembly elections, assurances were given regarding Mhadei water dispute or double tracking. What happened to that? They are giving only oral assurances. They just want to pacify the people and buy time. We do not require assurances. We demand final executive order just like in the case of Jammu and Kashmir declaring that so many seats have been reserved for STs in Goa. We already have 9.9 per cent population of ST community.”
GAKUVED Federation general secretary Rupesh Velip said, “The Union government issued notification for political reservation for four States but did not include Goa in that. We demand that Goa too be included in that notification or a separate notification be issued for Goa. We are firm on final notification reserving four seats for ST communities.”
Journalist Soiru Velip said, “Since beginning, our demand has been for final notification reserving four seats. Now government has pushed for a Delimitation Commission which is part of the notification process. But as this has come at the last moment, it means that the final notification will not come before the general elections. In July last year, the Chief Minister gave an assurance that he will lead an all-party delegation to Delhi but he did nothing for six months. Though it is a positive sign but people are not happy because again it may remain just as an assurance.”
Mission Political Reservation for Scheduled Tribes of Goa on Saturday stated that they are expecting a positive outcome from the Central and State Government over the political reservation for ST in assembly. President John Fernandes, who was one of the members of the delegation, said, “We met Home Minister Amit Shah along with the Chief Minister and all other ST leaders. The Home Minister assured us that he will take up our issue before the next Cabinet meeting and it will be seen that the notification for constituting Delimitation Commission is issued before the dates for Lok Sabha polls are declared. We hope that the Home Minister will abide by the assurances given to us. The Delimitation Commission will carry forward the process of providing reservation.”
ST leader Rama Kankonkar said, “We only demand a final notification by Election Commission of India (ECI) reserving four Goa Assembly seats for ST communities. We don’t want assurances any more because since 2014 Lok Sabha polls the government is assuring us. Notification by ECI will put the issue to rest.”
Shah assured Delimitation Commission before code of conduct for LS polls: CM
PANJIM: Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Saturday said that Union Home Minister Amit Shah has assured them that the Delimitation Commission for deciding on Assembly seats to be reserved for ST communities in the State will be constituted by the Election Commission of India (ECI) before the model code of conduct for ensuing Lok Sabha election comes into force.
“I am confident that ST communities will get reservation in the 2027 Goa Assembly elections,” said Sawant after he returned from Delhi.
