PANJIM: All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary and Goa desk in charge Dr Chellakumar on Tuesday alleged that TCP Minister Vijai Sardesai wanted to topple the BJP-led government when Manohar Parrikar was in the US.
Chellakumar said, “Vijai had contacted me and some Congress MLAs before leaving for his trip abroad. He had said that once he returns, he will topple the government as Parrikar will be in US. He had met me along with Atanasio Monserrate, with the condition that Vijai should be the Chief Minister.”
The revelation came minutes after Monserrate, who was spoken of as the Congress candidate against Parrikar in the Panjim by-election, joined Goa Forward Party (GFP).
Sardesai was on vacation with his family from June end and returned on July 10. Parrikar had left the country on July 6 to attend an event in US and returned back on July 14.
Chellakumar said the move could not materialise as Sardesai wanted to be the Chief Minister which was not acceptable to the Congress. “Rahul Gandhi during the Fatorda meeting had categorically said that Congress will not tolerate corruption even for two minutes and that was the reason why we did not adopt corrupt practices to topple the government,” he said.
“If Congress had to agree to all Vijai’s conditions, we would have toppled the government by now. Everything was in our favour but we were firm on our principles,” the Goa desk in charge said adding that Sardesai had demanded the Rajya Sabha ticket to his party leader Suraj Lotlikar.
“It is natural that Babush and Vijai will go together. Congress has not allowed them to sell the State that is why they are upset,” he said.
“We will not allow any more blackmail politics. Let Vijai and Babush topple the government. We are not with them anymore. We will prefer to be in opposition than being part of such dirty politics,” he added.
