Tag: Goa congress

It’s Not Politics, It’s the Marketplace, Stupid

The defection of eight legislators from the Congress to the BJP in Goa shows that a promise means nothing, its all about buying and selling.

Indian mainstream politics is now negligibly about principles, and more about the stock-market.

On January 22, Congress candidates for the Goa assembly elections took a solemn oath in a temple, church and mosque not to desert the party if and when elected.

Well, that resonant covenant did not last long. Eight of the 11 MLAs elected on a Congress ticket have now joined the BJP. 

As to the vow they had taken, Digambar Kamath has claimed that he went through a prasad ceremony and God nodded yes to his resolve to switch over. It’s like a remake of how Moses, long years ago, accosted God on the mountain in a moment of perplexity, and brought back the Ten Commandments. Clearly, God, even in these satanic times, remains accessible to the repentant.

You may rightfully think there is a catch on the receiving side as well: the ruling BJP swears by Lord Ram as the source of its moral universe, as we have repeatedly witnessed.

Now, the aforesaid Lord is credited by the author of the Ramcharitmanas as being an exemplar of the edict that one may lose one’s life but not break a vow (Raghukul reet sada chali aayi/ Pran jaayein per vachan na jaayein). So what of the eight who have broken their vow? Clearly, had they not joined the principled ruling party, Lord Ram may never have pardoned their transgression.

There are, of course, those canny ones who hold the view that not Bhagwan Ram but Lord Bazaar has had the last word in the pious transaction. And as things are, the debate is by no means one-sided.

It should now be quite obvious that the republic’s enslavement to Lord Bazaar is complete, barring exceptions which only prove the rule: the communists, for example, remain ossified in their wrong-headed defeatism. But pray, who are they?

Often uninformed complaints are still made by the ardent hoi polloi about the undependable nature of the democratic process. Here is, therefore, a suggestion that may now be boldly embraced so that an example is set for other wobbling democracies to follow:

Let aspirants to political power in all elections be asked to stand as independent candidates, on the basis of whatever clout they claim to have. Once they are elected, let Indian politics thereon be guided by the structural genius of the cattle fair and the IPL.

Namely, let a ‘Candidate Mela’ be organised at the conclusion of the electoral process. Let all political parties desirous of buying up Member Stock be invited to bid for the elected independents. The auction would be democratic exercise, open and transparent, and all parties would get their due according to their standing in the Bazaar.

It should be obvious that this system would make the need for an Election Commission redundant, saving the exchequer much-needed moolah.

For some backward reason, there is still in this ancient land a petulant resistance to adopting the equitable practices of the Bazaar all across social, ethical, and political life. This is why our tryst with Vishwa Gurudom remains stymied. After all, if the purpose of politics is to acquire power, what better teacher than Lord Bazaar?

A Gautam Adani may very well succeed in showing the way out to uppity NDTV newscasters and anchors, but he dare not oust the least of the commercial messages that are the true and proper fare provided by the media now. 

Only Indian democracy has the cultural resilience for this makeover to the flexibilities of buy and sell. Let us use that USP and hasten our march to world dominance.

Badri Raina taught literature at Delhi University.

Eight Goa Congress MLAs, Including Former CM, Join BJP

A similar incident had taken place in 2019 when 10 Congress MLAs had switched over to the BJP.

New Delhi: Eight Goa Congress MLAs joined the ruling BJP on Tuesday and passed a resolution to merge the Congress Legislature Party with the saffron party.

Leader of Opposition Michael Lobo moved the resolution in the presence of seven other MLAs. The resolution was seconded by the former chief minister and MLA Digambar Kamat, sources said.

Earlier, BJP state president Sadanand Shet Tanavade had said eight Congress MLAs will join the ruling party.

In the 40-member Goa assembly, the Congress had 11 legislators. After the defection, the Congress has been reduced to just three, while the BJP’s ranks swell to 33. The BJP won only 20 seats, but two Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party MLAs have also defected while three independent MLAs have also extended support to the government.

Among the MLAs who shifted their allegiances are Digambar Kamat, Michael Lobo, his wife Delilah Lobo, Rajesh Phaldesai, Kedar Naik, Sankalp Amonkar, Aleixo Sequeira and Rudolf Fernandes.

In July this year, the Goa Congress was able to avert a split after the BJP claimed that six MLAs were set to join it.

The Congress has faced difficulties in keeping its flock together in Goa. In a similar move in July 2019, 10 Congress MLAs switched over to the BJP.

After the MLAs joined the BJP, chief minister Sawant took a dig at the Congress, saying while the party was undertaking a ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ (Unite India March), its MLAs were on a mission to ‘Congress chodo‘ (leave Congress).

The MLAs have joined the BJP “keeping in mind the vision of PM Narendra Modi to create a new India and for the development of Goa”, he said, according to the Indian Express.

Kamat, said: “This decision was based on circumstances. I had said in the beginning when I was not made the Leader of Opposition. What is happening in the Congress is not right. If you read the letter, it is about Congress Jodo and not Bharat Jodo. The work done under PM Modi has got earned international respect for citizens of India. My workers in Margao said the (Congress) party is doing nothing. That is why we decided to take part in the development of Goa.”

(With PTI inputs)

Amidst Allegations of Engineering Defections, Kamat Removed as ‘Permanent Invitee’ to CWC

Former Goa chief minister Kamat had last week been accused of trying to engineer a split within the Congress’s legislature party in the state after failing to attend a party meeting and going silent for a period of time.

New Delhi: Interim Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on Sunday, July 17, removed senior Goa Congress leader Digambar Kamat as a permanent invitee to the Congress Working Committee (CWC).

K.C. Venugopal, a Rajya Sabha MP and the general secretary of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) issued a statement communicating Gandhi’s decision “with immediate effect”.

The move comes a week after former chief minister Kamath, along with Goa Congress MLA Michael Lobo, were accused by Congress Goa in-charge Dinesh Gundu Rao of trying to engineer a split within the legislature party in the state.

According to the Indian Express, Kamat was made a permanent invitee to the CWC in April this year. While not announced as such, Kamat was thought to be the party’s chief ministerial candidate going into the Goa assembly elections in February.

Fears of a split arose when five Congress leaders of the state – Kamat, Lobo, Kedar Naik, Rajesh Faldesai and Delialah Lobo – missed a meeting and then maintained radio silence thereafter. 

On July 10, Rao called a press conference and only five Congress MLAs of the 11 in the legislative assembly turned up. The party also claimed the support of a sixth, unnamed MLA. This was, however, enough to avert a split since the support of two-thirds of the MLAs in the legislature party is required to avoid disqualification of rebel legislators under the anti-defection law.

Also read: For Now, Congress May Have Dodged a Political Bullet in Goa

The day after the presser, senior Congress leader Mukul Wasnik was dispatched to Panaji to shore up the party in the state. A meeting with Wasnik was attended by all Congress MLAs except Kamat.

On July 12, the party submitted disqualification petitions against Kamat and Lobo, accusing the two leaders of colluding with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to trigger a defection. The BJP’s Goa chief minister, Pramod Sawant, however, denied his party’s role in the proceedings. 

Lobo, who was the leader of the opposition in the Goa assembly, was removed from his post.

Amidst these events, five Goa Congress MLAs were, on Saturday, July 16, dispatched to Chennai ahead of the polls for the President of India, set to take place on July 18. None of the five legislators who had gone incommunicado earlier in the month were among those flown to Chennai.

(With PTI inputs)

For Now, Congress May Have Dodged a Political Bullet in Goa

A split looked imminent in the Congress when five of its Goa MLAs missed a meeting last week. However, it seems that the rebel MLAs don’t have enough numbers to avoid the anti-defection law.

New Delhi: The Congress appears to have averted a potential split in its Goa legislative party for the time being. The party paraded five of its 11 MLAs at a press briefing on Monday, July 11 and claimed to have the support of six MLAs, although it didn’t name the sixth legislator.

The move has put the rebels in a sticky position, as at least eight MLAs should defect from the party to avoid disqualification under the anti-defection law.

The Congress high command in New Delhi sprung into action on Sunday night, July 10 when the party’s interim president Sonia Gandhi rushed senior leader Mukul Wasnik to Panjim to contain what appeared to be an escalating situation. A split looked imminent in the party when the Goa unit of the Congress was caught off guard when five of its MLAs – Michael Lobo, Digambar Kamat, Kedar Naik, Rajesh Faldesai and Delialah Lobo – missed a meeting and went incommunicado thereafter last week.

From then on, speculations were rife that the rebels within the Congress ranks may increase to eight – a necessary number for the defectors to avoid anti-defection law and merge with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Dinesh Gundu Rao, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of Goa, immediately accused Michael Lobo, the former BJP leader who joined Congress only in January this year ahead of the assembly elections, and its own former chief minister Digambar Kamat of attempting to break the party at the BJP’s behest.

“One person – Digambar Kamat – did it to safeguard his own skin because so many cases are against him and the other person – Michael Lobo – did it for the sake of power and position. BJP wants to finish the opposition,” claimed Rao.

“BJP agents [are] trying for a two-third split in the Congress and offering huge money to MLAs to cross over,” Rao said.

Separately, former Goa Congress president Girish Chodankar has alleged that Congress MLAs were offered Rs 40 crore to join the BJP.

Although the chief minister Pramod Sawant rubbished the Congress’s accusations, the saffron party remained a talking point as the primary actor behind the latest implosion in the grand-old party because of the serendipitous presence of Union minister and Amit Shah’s close aide Bhupendra Yadav in Goa currently.

The chief minister, however, said that Yadav was in Goa to steer the pending cabinet reshuffle, although political commentators seemed to agree that the Congress in Goa is headed for a collapse. The development comes just days after the Uddhav Thackeray-led government in Maharashtra – in which the Congress was a partner – collapsed after a rebellion by Eknath Shinde.

Nonetheless, as a corrective measure, the Congress has removed Lobo from the position of its legislative party leader.

Political commentators believe that both Wasnik and Rao are clearly in the mood to take tough decisions to resurrect the party in the coastal state, and that may include overhauling the party leadership entirely.

The party, meanwhile, has moved a petition to the speaker seeking disqualification of Lobo and Kamat for “anti-party” activities.

Congress is not new to splits in Goa. In Pramod Sawant’s first term as chief minister, 10 of its legislators had joined the BJP to reduce the Congress into an irrelevant player in the assembly. But it seemed to have avoided a similar defection string at the moment.

Also read: As Congress Flounders in the Run up to 2024, a Reminder of the Miracle It Once Pulled Off

A failed attempt?

Meanwhile, both Lobo and Kamat, who went missing ahead of the party meeting to decide its strategies in the assembly session that began on July 11, have backtracked from their earlier positions against the Congress leadership, indicating a failed attempt at corralling enough MLAs to avoid the anti-defection law. Anything less than eight MLAs defecting from the party can lead to their disqualification or could force them to resign and seek re-election.

All five legislators who had gone missing attended the first day of the monsoon session of the assembly on July 11 and claimed that the Congress legislative unit was intact. The alleged engineer of the rebellion, Lobo, went on to say: “There is nothing wrong. I don’t know what is the problem. All Congress MLAs were together. We went to South Goa for a meeting on Sunday. They (Congress leaders) again wanted to have another press conference which was not required, so we did not attend it.”

Similarly, Kamat also said he was very much in the Congress, and had told Rao in a meeting on July 9 that he was “hurt by the humiliation” that he faced in the party.

Disregarding their opinion, however, the Congress suspended both the leaders for indulging in “anti-party activities.”

Ranjan Solomon, a Goa-based political analyst and civil liberties activist, said that the “tactical retreat” by both the BJP and rebels indicate that the Congress may have avoided a split at the moment. He said on July 10, the BJP looked comfortably placed to gain the advantage from the Congress’s implosion but now the party’s leaders are more reserved.

“The BJP already has a comfortable number in the assembly. With the support of 25 MLAs in the 40-member assembly, it could have increased its strength further if Congress rebels joined its ranks. But it seems that Lobo or Kamat may not have the adequate numbers to deliver any strategic advantage to the BJP as yet,” he said.

“The rebels know that resigning and seeking re-election is not an option. They need to be in enough numbers to join the BJP and continue as MLAs for the rest of the term. Since most of the alleged rebels have won from Congress strongholds, it may be very difficult for them to get re-elected. The last assembly elections were an apt example. Nine of the 10 defectors from the Congress lost their seats,” he added.

The latest episode in the Congress is clearly bad optics for the party. As a show of strength in the run-up to assembly polls earlier this year, the Congress had made all its candidates take oaths that they will remain loyal to the party and will not switch sides in any circumstance. That oath has proven to be yet another poll gimmick, despite Congress having taken immediate corrective measures.

Ground Report: Goa Wants Change, But Isn’t Sure Who to Vote For

Rising unemployment and widespread allegations of corruption against the BJP government in the state have made calls for anti-incumbency louder. However, no clear opposition to replace the ruling party is currently in sight.

Panjim: Politics in Goa is currently in a state of unprecedented flux. Every day, leaders and MLAs from the tiny state on India’s west coast are changing political allegiances, putting Goans in a deep dilemma as to who to cast their vote for just two months before the one of the most touted assembly elections of 2022.

In the last three months, at least nine MLAs of the 40-member assembly have changed their political affiliations. Besides, local political leaders and former MLAs are switching parties on a daily basis.

Of the nine MLAs who have switched sides, three joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), two joined the Trinamool Congress (TMC), one joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and one joined the Congress, in addition to an independent MLA also extending support to the Congress. Apart from them, Milind Naik, senior minister and BJP MLA from Mormugao, resigned after Congress leaders accused him of sexual exploitation.

In order to understand the prevailing mood and political dynamics, The Wire spent the last ten days visiting various constituencies across the state.

Anti-incumbency against BJP

A deep anger against the ruling dispensation can be observed in Goa, cutting across religion and caste demographics. Growing unemployment, rising prices of essential commodities and rampant corruption over the government’s ten years in power are some of the primary factors driving the anti-incumbency.

When asked what will happen in the upcoming election, one Mahesh Naik, who runs a small tea stall in Margao’s Gogol area said, “God knows what will happen but one thing is certain; the BJP is not winning.”

Bypassing the 2017 mandate, the BJP formed the government that year by allying with the regional parties like the Goa Forward Party (GFP) and Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP). Former chief minister and BJP veteran Manohar Parrikar had brokered the deal and kept the party united, despite the cracks in the foundation within.

However, after Parrikar’s death in 2019, the BJP kept itself in power by engineering defections, as evinced by the presence of seven defectors in its current 12-member cabinet.

For the first time in 27 years, the BJP will not have Parrikar at the helm for the Goa election. Political observers have opined that the saffron party is in disarray as factionalism has grown deep in light of the RSS’s excessive control.

Also read: Is There a Conflict of Interest in a Prominent Goa Media House’s Close Links to BJP?

Speaking to The Wire, former state election commissioner and political commentator Prabhakar Timble said, “No doubt that there is massive anger against the BJP on ground, but it is to be seen how opposition parties capitalise on it. The people of Goa are not liking the fact that politicians are changing parties like they change their clothes. Goans are fed up with this politics and want to teach these politicians a lesson.”

Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant, state BJP chief Sadanand Tanavade inducting Saligao MLA Jayesh Salgaonkar. Photo: BJP4Goa.

“The congress is planning to bring in fresh faces this time; they don’t have old faces anyway.” Timble continued, “Though the Congress has to be the natural alternative, – and it definitely is – the response of the party and leadership is perceived to be slow. But the BJP is facing serious internal issues as the original kariyakartas are revolting in many of their strongholds. MLAs are deserting the party; some are accusing their own Minister of a scam.”

Siddesh Rane, a local businessman and a resident of Panjim said, “Since I started voting, I only voted for BJP because Parrikar was running it. After his death, Delhi is running the Goa government; they are looting our state, destroying natural reserves. Goans died due to lack of oxygen but no one was punished. First, the government said, inquiries of deaths will demoralise frontline workers. Later, the health minister said, no one died of oxygen shortage. Is this the way you run a government? Whatever it is, we are voting for change this time.”

Too many, too small

In the last assembly election, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) secured around 6% of the vote share. This time, the party has jumped into the fray with more resources and a plan of action. However, in the last five years, the party has failed to nurture a leader who can lead the party in the state. The party still doesn’t have a leader who is well-known across Goa. The party’s state convener Rahul Mhambre is not popular beyond his hometown of Mapusa and similarly, new inductee Amit Palekar is mostly known as an advocate, not a politician.

The AAP’s Goa campaign is hinged on three primary factors: national convener and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejeriwal’s image; inducting popular leaders from other parties; and promising various social-welfare schemes. To this end, the party already inducted leaders like Dayanand Narvekar, Mahadev Naik, Alina Saldanha, Pratima Coutinho and former BJP leader Ganpat Gaonkar.

Aam Aadmi Party campaign cutout with Arvind Kejriwal’s face. Photo: Himadri Ghosh.

Kejriwal’s promise of free pilgrimages to various religious centres didn’t resonate with the people of Goa and even the AAP’s other promises such as free electricity, increased financial assistance for women and aid for the unemployed youth saw only tepid response from locals.

Clenton D’Souza, a resident of Old Goa said, “The AAP’s free tourism promise is hilarious. Goans are capable of going on tours by their own means. They should tell us about their vision on the environment, mining, and tourism. There is no clarity on how they intend to tackle unemployment. If the AAP is suggesting a change in Goa’s politics, why are they inducting tainted leaders like Dayanand Narvekar and Mahadev Naik?”

“The AAP has successfully created a niche for itself in Goa’s political space and has regularly taken up issues of political consequence. However, the party has failed to build a mass base outside of certain pockets and lacks a leader with popularity across the state. While the party can be expected to increase its vote share, it has made little headway as it has failed to explain its raison d’etre beyond being a party that is against corruption and freebies, a pitch that has gained little traction,” said a Panjim-based journalist.

Also read: As AAP Eyes ‘National Party’ Status With 2022 Assembly Polls, A Look at Where It Stands Now

The TMC is the party with maximum visibility in the state. Most of the hoardings and virtually every lamp post in Goa have West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s face plastered on them. The party, on the other hand, is aggressively engineering defections.

Mamata Banerjee’s face plastered all across Goa airport highway. Photo: Himadri Ghosh.

The latest was prominent Congress leader and MLA from Curtorim, Aleixo Reginaldo. Before this, sole NCP MLA Churchill Alemao, along with his daughter Valanka, also joined the TMC. Other leaders like Raju Cabral, Salim Volvoikar and Kiran Kandolkar joined the party a few months prior.

TMC’s public meeting in Benaulim to induct MLA Churchill Alemao and his daughter Valanka Alemao. Photo: Himadri Ghosh.

The TMC’s activity is solely run by political strategist Prashant Kishor-led consultancy firm, the Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC). From negotiating with leaders to join the TMC to designing the campaign and even assisting probable candidates in daily campaigning and stitching alliances with other parties, everything is done by the I-PAC.

The TMC recent decision to join hands with Goa’s oldest party, the MGP, could prove to be a double-edged sword, given that MGP president Deepak Dhavalikar and MLA Sudin Dhavalikar have publicly endorsed right-wing organisations like the Sanatan Sanstha which has even been named on the chargesheet for the Gauri Lankesh murder case.

Moreover, in last ten days, two MGP candidates, Pravin Arlekar and Premendra Shet from the party’s strongholds of the Pernem and Mayem constituencies have resigned citing the “TMC-MGP alliance.” While Shet has already joined BJP, Arlekar is in advanced talks with the saffron party.

Political observers believe both the TMC and the AAP can split anti-BJP votes in a few pockets but overall, both will remain only marginal players.

“Of late, the AAP has increased its traction due to the entry of the TMC. As Congress leaders got poached, the acrimony has not gone down well, making the AAP a more acceptable opposition,” Goan advocate and political analyst Cleofato Coutinho told The Wire. “The TMC has no traction. They are solely dependent on the face and image of poached leaders, loaded with aggressive publicity campaigns. The MGP had a good chance of staying at 4-5 seats but the chemistry between the two cannot work. The alliance will pull down the MGP,” Coutinho continued.

Also read: How Prashant Kishor’s ‘Project Goa’ for TMC Is Failing

Broken Congress the default beneficiary?

While the Congress party may appear fractured in many other states, this is nothing compared to its situation in Goa. The party, which emerged as the single largest party in the 2017 assembly election by bagging 17 seats, now has only two MLAs remaining in the assembly: veteran leader and the longest-serving chief minister of Goa Pratapsingh Rane and fellow former chief minister Digambar Kamat, the latter being the party’s most probable face for the upcoming election.

An eye check-up camp organised by probable Congress candidate Amit Patkar in the Curchorem constituency. Photo: Himadri Ghosh.

The Congress is the least visible party in the state and what’s more, it failed to capitalise on the issues which actually rocked the state in the past month.

BJP MLA from Panjim Atanasio “Babush” Monserrate, who switched over to BJP in 2019, recently alleged that Public Works Department (PWD) minister Deepak Pauskar had sold engineering jobs for money. “I have proof that people have paid the minister between Rs 25-30 lakh for each engineer post and that the minister sold the posts to the highest bidder. It is a Rs 70 crore scam,” Monserrate told the media. But the Congress failed to capitalise on this infighting.

Additionally, senior state Congress leaders accused minister Milind Naik of sexual exploitation and submitted evidence of the same via a formal complaint to the police. Naik was forced to resign when this came to light but again, the Congress failed to make the most of the scandal.

Speaking to The Wire, the Congress’s South Goa district president, Joe Dias said, “The BJP and other political parties like the AAP and TMC are trying their best to break into Congress holds and they have been successful to an extent. But the Congress is the only party which has presence across all 40 constituencies in Goa. The Congress party’s strength lies with the people, not with the leaders. Leaders may have left but voters stand strong with the party.”

While many have written the Congress off in Goa, The Wire found that minority voters (both Muslims and Christians) in many constituencies are consolidating in favour of the party as anger against party-hoppers reach new heights.

In the Salcette, Mormugao, Tiswadi, Quepem and Bardez talukas, there are around 17 seats where the minority electorate is more than 40% and where they significantly determine electoral outcomes. What’s more, there are another seven seats in the state where minorities account for more than 25% of the votes. Whether this is enough to propel the Congress to victory, however, remains to be seen

Goa: Despite 1100% Spike in COVID-19 Cases, BJP Is Busy Raiding Its Former Ally

Breaking up the Goa Forward Party doesn’t really do much for the BJP, except to prove that the saffron party is cynical enough to play political hopscotch during a pandemic and an economic downturn.

On a day that Goa hit a new milestone with its first two COVID-19 deaths and recorded 1100% spike in cases, the BJP went on a political hunting raid trying to split its own former ally, the Goa Forward Party (GFP). Asked if the political grapevine had got it right, GFP president Vijai Sardessai told The Wire, “they are trying”.

The political moves being managed by the saffron party’s shadowy organising secretary Satish Dhond, said to have a direct line to union home minister Amit Shah, come against the backdrop of chief minister Pramod Sawant’s gross mishandling of the COVID-19 crisis and the state’s finances and provide a convenient distraction from issues that really matter.

A “green zone” till April 12 when it was COVID-free, Goa’s curve has ballooned dramatically this month, hitting 951 cases and two deaths (as on June 24), a spike of 1100%, the local O Heraldo reported. Six localities and villages across Goa now house hotspots, with the settlement at Mangor hill in Vasco leading the count with 283 cases.

Breaking up the GFP which has only three MLAs doesn’t really do much for the BJP in terms of numbers, except to prove that the saffron party has the muscle and the coffers to do it—and is cynical enough to play political hopscotch even during a challenging pandemic and economic downturn.

Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant with Goa speaker Rajesh Patnekar at Shiv Jayanti celebration earlier this year. Photo: Author provided

The BJP has already a bloated strength of 27 (in a House of 40), 10 of them acquired from the Congress and two from the MGP last year. The ruling party lost the 2017 election but still managed to scramble to power, poaching MLAs from other parties along the way. Last week, the Supreme Court issued notice to Goa speaker Rajesh Patnekar on a petition filed by the Congress Party. The speaker has kept the party’s disqualification petition against its MLAs in cold storage since August 8, 2019, the Congress said.

Sardessai, who played a pivotal role in the BJP’s return to power, has turned its biggest critic since being dropped from Sawant’s cabinet, calling his government “inefficient, non-transparent and having no administrative accountability”, accusations hard to dispute as the government lurches from crisis to crisis. The BJP’s moves to splinter the GFP comes days after the local party petitioned the state Lokayukta (notices have already been sent to the government in the matter) for an investigation into the diversion of a coronavirus relief fund meant for labourers to the pockets of BJP workers and supporters.

Vijai Sardessai. Photo: Facebook

Much of the Rs 13 crore Goa Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board Assistance Scheme-Covid-19 (set up end March to help workers tide over wage loss) had been siphoned off by BJP karyakartas, the GFP complaint alleges. Out to shoot down the messenger, labour minister Jennifer Monserrate told The Wire, “Don’t go by everything you hear from Goa Forward. Since when have they become so clean?”

She has bank details to prove the money (from a Rs. 5.6 crore fund, according to the government) had gone to the right beneficiaries, Monserrate claimed. Her statement, however, runs counter to the chief minister’s admission that he’d spotted the names of several sarpanchas who’d taken the Rs 6,000 dole meant for labourers (“What can I do if some sarpanch registers as a labourer?” – was his wry comment).

The Wire independently spoke to a random selection of people on the list. Among them four housewives (“I never leave the house, I have a sick father to look after,” one said), a “utility” worker who applied because he too was out of work, and even an employee of a major tyre factory who took the handout even though he still has a well-paid admin job. None, of course, are construction workers and all had been alerted to the scheme by their BJP panchas.

By its own admission, the Goa government is so broke (revenues slumped 80% making the liability difficult to handle, a senior official said) that it even diverted funds from the District Mineral Foundations to ride out the crunch. “They have no concept of the kind of financial crisis we’re in,” former deputy CM and MGP leader Sudin Dhavlikar told the local media Wednesday. The chief minister was selling state security bonds every now and then to just manage the government’s wage bill, he pointed out.

Also read: Red Flags Over Goa’s COVID-19 Testing as State Itches to Reopen Economy

Compelled to cut back on six crucial healthcare projects at the Goa Medical College because of the squeeze, the chief minister hasn’t for a moment taken his eyes off the construction of a memorial for a dead politician and the superfluous beach landscaping under the smart city project (both infrastructure projects are directly under him) where work continues apace even during the pandemic and economic meltdown.

“Only the government knows how the funds for the Manohar Parrikar Smriti Sthal will come,” a government official says. All he knows is that the Rs 10 crore project (being built by Univastu India Ltd on Miramar beach) has a deadline of March 2021, and work was fast-tracked soon as the 40-day lockdown lifted. Tonnes of concrete are being poured into the sandy beach for the structure’s foundation, even though Goa’s seen an intense start to the monsoon with flooding all around.

Miramar promenade project. Photo: Author provided

Bordering the Parrikar memorial, almost a kilometre of beach is being landscaped at the cost of Rs 13 crore with the construction of a gabion wall, a granite promenade and the random placement of gazebos under the guise of the smart city project, never mind that Goa has one of the worst internet connectivity systems in place. Launched in 2015, one of the prime objectives of the Centre’s Smart City Mission was to create an efficient urban infrastructure with high-speed internet, good public transport and uninterrupted water and power supply in 100 Indian cities.

In Panaji, the funds have been diverted to beautification projects of the chief minister’s choice, though Sawant has never lived in the city. Asked for a break-up of projects and the funds received and spent, Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Ltd said it would “take time”. The special purpose vehicle set up for the project’s execution has been often accused of a complete lack of transparency.

The beach beautification project under smart city. Photo: Author provided

It’s easy to dismiss the Goa chief minister as an incompetent, inexperienced, fumbling leader. At a recent press conference turning down the need for a short lockdown at a growing hotspot, he said “Goans have good immunity” to fight the infection. In another instance, he said coronavirus was just like the flu.

Also read: Goa: Backed by Local BJP MLAs, ‘Self-Lockdowns’ in Villages Draw Party Leadership’s Ire

The pandemic has also allowed the BJP government to brazenly subvert the system and use the police selectively against the opposition and activists. Recently, the Vasco police arrested Goa PCC vice president Sankalp Amonkar and a half dozen other Congress supporters for holding a press conference in which they pointed to the flaws in the government’s response to the pandemic. An FIR has also been registered by the crime branch against the former NCP MLA Micky Pacheco for his criticism of the government.

Last month seven activists were arrested for protesting the filling up of agricultural land for a new panchayat ghar in Taleigoa, Monserrate’s constituency. The panchayat, known to overlook violations by huge developers, runs an air-conditioned office, probably one of the poshest in Goa.

Devika Sequeira is an independent journalist based in Goa.

Backstory: Crouching Tiger, Dragooned Dragon – and Some Bleating Lambs

A fortnightly column from The Wire’s public editor.

The last three weeks have passed like a flash before our eyes and the only certitude they brought was the knowledge that the executive, in the avatar of a crouching tiger, is preparing to spring on that poor dragooned creature that goes by the name of Indian democracy.

We have it on the excellent authority of the prime minister no less that the tiger, much like his own party one could say, is enjoying a sharp surge in its numbers.

So watch this carnivorous feline crouch to capture its prey. Note its rippling sinews strengthened by electoral victory. Observe its well rounded abdomen filled to satisfaction with the bodies of legislators from opposing parties rushing to be embraced between its retracted claws. Watch how it adds more teeth to its jaws through a string of legislations designed to enhance their draconian quotient and which bestows upon it the power of absolute discretion.

But hark, do we hear some noises in response somewhere in the distance? Could it be the sounds of resistance in the outback, some stirrings of outrage in the gloaming? Perhaps a television chat show on how such a beast should and could be tamed?

Alas, no. Those are the mere bleatings of lambs.

Two developments over this fortnight in particular need highlighting – the continuing capture of assemblies and the legislative processes and the hollowing out of the regime of rights in the country. 

Also read: Allowing the State to Designate Someone as a ‘Terrorist’ Without Trial is Dangerous

Neither of the two developments are new – after all, the Goa and Manipur elections were stolen through money power and political muscle flexing two years ago and the state has always tried to render ineffectual laws like the Right to Information.

What is an alarming new dimension though, and one that has escaped the media’s attention, is the overlapping of the two processes. Capturing parliament to pass anti-democratic legislation represents a serious breakdown in the system of checks and balances. Presently, Modi 2.0 government bears all the markings of one-party rule and religious majoritarianism.

Before long, if we continue to allow ourselves to be frog marched blindfolded down this road, what is now de facto could become de jure.

Nothing brings us closer to this scenario than the manner the amendment to the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) sailed through not just the Lok Sabha but the Rajya Sabha. The Wire commentary, ‘Allowing the State to Designate Someone as a ‘Terrorist’ Without Trial is Dangerous’ (August 1) regards it as “the most dangerous bit of legislation the country has ever seen” since it invests the government with the power to “label and stigmatise an individual as a terrorist”.

Watch | #BeyondTheHeadlines | UAPA Bill: India’s Most Dangerous Law Yet

Nowhere does the new law define what constitutes terrorist literature and it can punish an individual “even when it doesn’t have the evidence to actually prosecute and convict him. It is, in other words, an extra-legal form of punishment.” 

This “bizarre” amendment, another Wire analysis observes, “shows the change in thinking about criminal laws – as an instrument of public shame rather than an instrument of providing justice” (‘Between the NIA Amendment and Now UAPA, the Squeeze on Human Rights is On’, July 24).

‘Public shame’, in fact, are mild words. This, in intent, is public hanging.

The Rajya Sabha, which has thus far acted as a backstop for many a dangerous Bills getting translated into law without adequate parliamentary scrutiny, allowed this draconian amendment through without even sending it to a select committee. This eloquently signals the new pusillanimity of the majority of our elected representatives.

In fact, the Upper House has let down the people of this country this time, not just on one, not just on two, but three pieces of legislation that have significant human rights dimensions – the other two being the Triple Talaq Bill and the amendment to the RTI law. That this happened despite the numbers in the Upper House not being weighted in favour of the ruling party, reveals the new capacity that the executive has to commandeer legislators across party lines.

This is a consequence, as The Wire piece reminds us (‘With Pressure Tactics and Opposition Disarray, Rajya Sabha No Longer a Hurdle for BJP’, July 31), of oppositional disarray and the ruling party’s capacity for meticulous data crunching and pre-emptive planning – the booth karyakartas who snagged elections for the BJP seem to have their counterparts in parliament.

But there could be a disturbing and completely unacceptable factor that has not figured in media coverage as prominently as it should have – the use of the tax and enforcement arms to coerce MPs in the opposition to fall in line. In Derek O’Brien’s words, “This is not floor management. It’s the not-so-invisible but most dependable allies of the BJP: the CBI and ED.”

Could the weaponisation of the tax and enforcement agencies be one of the secret ingredients in BJP’s recipe for shoring up political presence, getting bills passed and winning elections; the reason why MLAs are beginning to change party affiliations as they do their kurtas? (‘Congress-NCP Mass Defections in Maharashtra Signal a Deep Rot in Leadership’, August 1; ‘Congress Decimated in Goa: 10 of 15 MLAs Defect to Ruling BJP’, July 10; ‘The Imminent Implosion of the Congress-JD(S) in Karnataka Has Happened’, July 9).

How these agencies operate we will never know, given the opacity that protects them and which they protect fiercely and seek to deepen (‘NIA Wants Media Gag in Trial Against Pragya Thakur, Cites ‘Communal Harmony’ (August 2).

The Indian mainstream media would have earned the title of being the fourth pillar of democracy, even as the second pillar – the legislature – looks decidedly shaky, if they had investigated these developments and connected the dots. That has not happened even when major leads have surfaced like the suicide of a prominent Karnataka businessman which hinted at the deployment of corrosive tax scrutiny for political ends (‘Watch | V.G. Siddhartha Death: A Symbol of India Inc’s Debt Crisis?’, July 31).

As in most ominous patterns of this kind, silence quickly descends on such issues of momentous public interest and they are erased from public consciousness. Out of mind they might be, but sooner or later they will surface when a Surendra Gadling or a Sudha Bardwaj or a Shoma Sen is summarily locked for a year without access to even the FIR filed against them.

Ravish Kumar’s riposte

The humble question is the most important device in the toolkit of a journalist. The fact that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not answered a single one of them in a press conference during his last term in power, and is unlikely to do so in the present one, is what this year’s Magsaysay Awardee Ravish Kumar perceives as undemocratic (‘Journalist Ravish Kumar Wins 2019 Ramon Magsaysay Award’, August 2).

As he put it in an interview with The Wire given this February, ‘I’m Not Anti-Modi, I Merely Ask Him Questions’. The citation to his award comes to the core of his journalistic practice: “In a media environment threatened by an interventionist state, toxic with jingoist partisans, trolls and purveyors of ‘fake news,’ and where the competition for market ratings has put the premium on ‘media personalities,’ ‘tabloidisation,’ and audience-pandering sensationalism, Ravish has been most vocal on insisting that the professional values of sober, balanced, fact-based reporting be upheld in practice” (‘Magsayasay on Ravish: Space for Independent, Responsible Media Has Shrunk in India’, August 2).

Engaged students

Clearly, university students are among The Wire’s most engaged readers. I received two mails over the last fortnight from students wanting to explain the state of play in their respective universities.

One of them is distressed by a crisis raging in her alma mater, the National Law University Odisha, where students “have been denied their basic human rights” and forced to protest against a “lethargic administration”. He/she believes that one pertinent issue that has, so far, not been raised by the student body is corruption charges against the administration. There have been pending cases in the Odisha high court. The matter, the mail emphasises, requires a thorough investigation as it cuts across not just the college administration, but the state government as well. These are forces a student body is incapable of taking on, given its limited resources.

Also read: Students at NLU Odisha to Go on Indefinite Protest Against Administration

The alumni of the institution have been trying to mobilise support for the cause of the present student body as they themselves have faced similar issues but could never raise them on such a massive scale. Student bodies of other national law colleges, including NLSIU, NALSAR, NUJS, HNLU, and others, have also recognised the gravity of the present struggle. Although students pay hefty annual fees, they have been deprived of the basic amenities that “premier” law schools should have.

From Benaras Hindu University, a research scholar writes that she has been consistently sexually and mentally harassed by the dean of her faculty. She had filed a complaint to the BHU administration, with all the required citing of evidence, and has also been assured by the internal complaint committee (in BHU, it is the women’s grievance cell of WGC) that she will not have to face such harassment in the future and that appropriate action will be taken in the case.

However, while the complaint was with the WGC, the said dean began to make her name public in the local media, and through other means such as social media. She has once again complained against this to the WGC, with all the evidence. The BHU administration is, she alleges, completely unwilling to act against the dean.

Meanwhile, student researchers working in various universities around the world have just sent this mail:

“We are a group of Indian citizens currently positioned as doctoral and postdoctoral fellows in various institutes in the USA, Canada and Israel. We are very concerned by the recent passage of the RTI (Amendment) Bill, 2019, by both houses of the parliament. It is necessary for the Information Commission to function independent of external influence for the proper functioning of the mechanisms proposed by the RTI Act, 2005. We have collectively put together over 90 signatures (over 50 of them from the US and Canada alone) appealing to the Hon. President to not sign the bill and to urge him to return it to the Parliament for reconsideration.

“We thought we should let you know about our letter, as we feel that our letter along with the many other letters and petitions being sent to the President should be paid their due attention by the President’s Office/Secretariat. We would really appreciate your help in spreading the word about all the grievances that are being sent to the President regarding this matter, as we see no other way of letting the country know about the number of people who are raising their concerns about this.” 

§

Dhiman Barman, a young poet from Assam, wants to withdraw his virtual consent to a statement titled, ‘Public Statement Against the Recent FIRs Against Miyah Poets and Online Trolling’, which appeared in The Wire piece,  ‘Writers, Academics and Activists Condemn FIRs Against and Online Harassment of Miyah Poets’, July 21).

Barman writes:

“After reading the statement with closer scrutiny (which I confess that I did not do before giving unfortunately the most casual consent for which in turn I solely am to be responsible), a revelation came to me that I would no longer be able to continue extending my support to the statement, being a responsible Indian citizen and an aware Assamese youth. Henceforth, I should not hold myself responsible for any further use of my name as such and involuntary involvements with the said statement, on the basis of my earlier unfortunate and rather casual consent which I hereby declare null and void from my side. I express my highest esteem towards the sovereignty of India and have the utmost faith in Indian constitution and judiciary.”

§

The last word goes to an unnamed young satirist who wishes to respond to the prime minister’s invitation to the public for suggestions on his forthcoming Independence Day speech:

“You asked [for] suggestions for your Independence Day speech, so I couldn’t stop myself from contributing to the making of New India…

“You are requested to please legalise dalaali completely, because dalaali is what is feeding your dedicated and honest dalaals (touts).”

Write to publiceditor@cms.thewire.in

Goa Cabinet Reshuffle: CM Pramod Sawant Drops Four Ministers

The ministers will be replaced by Michael Lobo, who resigned as deputy speaker of assembly earlier in the day, and three of the 10 MLAs who switched over to the BJP from the Congress this week.

Panaji: Ahead of a reshuffle of the state cabinet, Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant dropped four ministers – three of the Goa Forward Party (GFP) and one independent – from his cabinet Saturday.

A notification to this effect was issued in the afternoon.

According to the notification, the four ministers – deputy chief minister Vijai Sardesai, water resources minister Vinod Palyekar, rural development minister Jayesh Salgaonkar (all GFP MLAs) and revenue minister Rohan Khaunte (independent) – were dropped.

They would be replaced with Michael Lobo, who resigned as deputy speaker of assembly earlier in the day, and three of the 10 MLAs who switched over to the BJP from the Congress on Wednesday.

Also read: Goa’s Voters Lose as BJP Deliberately Misreads Anti-Defection Law

Lobo said apart from him, Chandrakant Kavlekar, Jeniffer Monserratte and Philip Nery Rodrigues would be a part of the new cabinet.

Taleigao MLA Jeniffer Monserratte is the wife of Panaji MLA Atanasio Monserratte. Earlier there were speculations that he would be inducted into the cabinet.

Lobo said, “Atanasio Monserratte refused to take up the ministerial berth and instead requested the chief minister to make his wife a part of the cabinet.”

The swearing-in ceremony of new ministers is scheduled to be held at 3 pm.

Goa CM Meets Amit Shah, 10 Congress MLAs Formally Join BJP

Pramod Sawant discussed the likely reshuffle of his cabinet.

New Delhi: Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant held deliberations with BJP president Amit Shah and other senior leaders on Thursday over the likely reshuffle of his cabinet as ten Congress MLAs formally took the saffron party’s membership here.

The ten MLAs had crossed over to the BJP on Wednesday.

Sawant arrived in the national capital with these MLAs and met Shah and BJP working president J.P. Nadda.

There was no official word over what transpired in his meeting with the top party brass but sources said a cabinet reshuffle in Goa is likely with the induction of the 10 MLAs.

Sawant will have to drop current ministers, many of whom are BJP allies whose support was crucial to his government’s survival, to accommodate the defectors from the Congress.

With its numbers in the 40-member assembly swelling to 27, the BJP is no longer dependent on its allies, including Goa Forward party and Independents.

With the Congress accusing the BJP of “murder of democracy” over its MLAs’ switchover, the Goa chief minister asserted that they have joined his party “willingly” and “unconditionally”. They want to push development work in the state, he said.

Also Read: Congress Decimated in Goa: 10 of 15 MLAs Defect to Ruling BJP

Chandrakant Kavlekar, who was the leader of the opposition in the assembly before he spearheaded a coup in his own party and joined the BJP along with nine other MLAs, told reporters that they wanted development work in their constituencies.

It was not possible if they were in the opposition, he claimed.

He also cited the “struggle” in the Congress, an apparent hit at the party’s leadership crisis after its president Rahul Gandhi resigned following its rout in the recent Lok Sabha polls, and wondered how long they could have continued in such conditions.

He also praised policies of the state and central governments, saying they had made a good impact.

After the 2017 assembly polls, a hung assembly had emerged, with Congress winning 17 and BJP 13 seats. But the BJP outsmarted the Congress by cobbling together a coalition quickly. With steady erosion from its ranks, the Congress’s strength is now only five.

Spectre of Rafale Deal Returns to Haunt Ailing Parrikar in Goa

“The audio clip released by the Congress is a desperate attempt to fabricate facts after their lies were exposed by the recent SC verdict on Rafale. No such discussion ever came up during any meeting,” an official statement from the Goa chief minister’s office said.

Panjim: The spectre of the Rafale controversy, raked up by a recorded conversation that features a Goa minister, couldn’t have come at a worse time for chief minister Manohar Parrikar whose media managers have tried to paint a picture of a leader still very much in command despite his terminal illness.

The Congress on Wednesday released an audio recording of a conversation in which  Goa’s health minister Vishwajit Rane, speaking to an unidentified person, is heard saying that Parrikar had made an “interesting statement on Rafale” in the cabinet meeting that took place at his residence some weeks ago.

Rane can be heard saying that Parrikar said he had all the information on Rafale in his bedroom. “This is something… which he said… that means he is holding them to ransom… He said it’s in my bedroom… here only in the flat… each and every document of Rafale is with me.”

Officially released photo of Parrikar meeting with a few MLAs in his office at secretariat on January 1, 2019.

The recording, which Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala released to the media outside parliament created a stir both in the Lok Sabha and in Goa, with the chief minister and Rane compelled to issue stinging denials.

“The audio clip released by the Congress party is a desperate attempt to fabricate facts after their lies were exposed by the recent Supreme Court verdict on Rafale. No such discussion ever came up during cabinet or any other meeting,” an official statement from Parrikar’s office said.

Also read: Rafale Takes Centerstage in Lok Sabha as Rahul Gandhi, Arun Jaitley Battle It Out

Rane who called a rushed press conference soon as the story broke to say that the tape had been “doctored” said he had spoken to BJP chief Amit Shah and asked for a police investigation into the matter. In a letter addressed to Parrikar he denied there had been a discussion between him “and any other individual in connection with an audio that has become viral regarding the Rafale row”. He said this was the work of someone trying to “play mischief” and those responsible should be brought to book.

He later told The Wire that the tape had been cleverly doctored “to sound very much like me”.

Here in Goa though, most journalists who have great access to ministers and politicians have little doubt that it is indeed Vishwajit Rane on the tape. The only question — somewhat inconsequential at this point —is who is on the other end of the phone line in the taped conversation.

Also read: Goa Minister Said Manohar Parrikar Has Rafale Documents in His Bedroom: Congress

Given its rather poor numerical strength in the Goa assembly and the fragile coalition math that binds its government together, the BJP is unlikely to take a tough stance on Vishwajit Rane for his indiscretion. The son of the former Congress chief minister Pratapsingh Rane, Vishwajit defected to the BJP last year and was soon inducted into the ministry. As things stand politically today, the BJP needs him more than he needs the saffron party in Goa.

But did Parrikar even bring up Rafale at the cabinet meeting — one of few that have taken place since he took ill in February last year? Another cabinet minister confirmed to The Wire that the chief minister did indeed make a passing reference to the Rafale deal, but not in quite the dramatic manner as recorded in the conversation that’s now gone viral. “He made some technical comments and had spoken on the benefits of the deal,” the source who asked that he not be named said.

Also read: During Crucial Rafale Negotiations, PMO Compromised Defence Ministry’s Position

Many believe Rane’s conversation is more a result of his impatience and frustration at being stuck in a non-functioning government. Parrikar has been ruling in absentia for the better part of the last ten months and still continues to hold some forty portfolios, despite a commitment from the party that there would be a portfolio redistribution after the December 11 election results.

On Tuesday, the BJP staged a photo op by bringing a frail chief minister to the state secretariat on New Year’s Day to show that he’s still capable of running a government. The Congress criticised the move as nothing more than an “exhibition”, while others criticised the party and the police for the brazen breach of security that allowed so many party supporters inside the precincts of the Secretariat for the BJP tamasha.