To secure unity of councillors, BJP to shift all 16 to a resort on Monday

MARGAO: Despite the show of strength of Margao councillors displayed by BJP on Sunday in Panjim, the party leadership in an indication of no-confidence within the group has decided to take additional steps to ensure that this unity is kept intact until the Margao Municipal Council’s (MMC) new chairperson is elected.

On Sunday, the BJP inducted the group of councillors that were part of the Model Margao camp backed by Margao MLA Digambar Kamat, who recently defected from Congress to the BJP. The BJP also inducted a councillor from the Goa Forward Party (GFP) camp, Raju Naik at the function that was attended by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and party senior leaders including former Fatorda MLA Damu Naik and former South Goa MP Narendra Sawaikar.

However, the councillors were in for a bigger surprise when they were told that all the 16 BJP councillors will be taken to a resort on Monday, October 10 and will be brought back to Margao directly on Wednesday morning, October 12, the day the councillors will elect their new chairperson by show of hands.

Sources informed that all this is being done to avoid the embarrassment BJP faced recently when a section of the BJP group of councillors cross-voted to elect the independent councillor Ghanashyam Shirodkar, who was backed by Goa Forward Party (GFP). Sources revealed that the BJP group of councillors are yet to arrive at a consensus as to who will be the next chairperson.

It is learnt from sources that Kamat is backing Damu Shirodkar, who had contested the recently-held MMC elections unsuccessfully, but that a section of the group is not in favour of him. Sources added that some councillors are also backing veteran councillor, Sadanand Naik. The group who met Kamat in Margao on Sunday morning were expecting the party to inform them about the decision over the chairperson candidate’s name but were surprised that neither Kamat nor later in the evening when they met the CM, the name was announced.

Meanwhile, the GFP President Vijai Sardesai reacted sharply to the media briefing of the BJP in Panjim and the comments of Kamat. 

“SATISFY YOUR GREED BUT WHY MURDER DEMOCRACY? Freshly defected @digambarkamat criticises #MMC councillors’ cross-voting! Nothing can be this farcical and absurd. We’ll abstain; get your chairperson elected. But why resort to tyrannical ordinances and destroy #Democracy and #Goa?” Sardesai tweeted.