Tag: Goa polls

Talks, Ties and a ‘Resort’ to Timeless Tradition: Exit Poll Projections Keep Politicians Busy

Top leaders of hopeful parties have been mobilised on the ground to affect quick alliances when the need arises.

New Delhi: With just a day to go before the results of the closely fought assembly elections in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Punjab and Manipur are out, political players are leaving no stone unturned to ensure they get to form the next government. Some are taking recourse to an increasingly popular trend of today – parking party candidates in a resort to avoid ‘horse trading’. 

After the exit poll results were flashed on news channels on the evening of March 7, the first visible action to try and remain in power was seen among Bharatiya Janata Party’s Goa unit. Sitting chief minister Pramod Sawant flew down to New Delhi the next morning to have a one-on-one with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The night before, the TV channels had given Goa a fractured mandate with the BJP’s bête noire, the Congress, an edge in that coastal state. This essentially meant there might be a need to do some backroom string pulling to ensure smaller entities come to the aid of the party.

Sawant seemed to have needed the personal assurance of top national leadership that they are up to it, particularly considering that this was the party’s first election since its Goa stalwart Manohar Parrikar passed away.

After meeting Modi on March 7, Sawant told the media, “Modi told me that BJP will form the government.”

He also said the prime minister, who himself campaigned in Goa, “Took constituency-wise details about the number of seats BJP will secure in Goa.” He also added, “We will form the next government in the state and in case we are short of a majority, independent MLAs will support BJP.”

A Times of India report said, he also added that if required, the party would go to Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) too.

Already, the Goa in-charge of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) Dinesh Gundu Rao had told local reporters in Panaji that if his party falls short of 21 seats to reach simple majority in the 40-member assembly on March 10, it would not mind approaching the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the MGP and the Trinamool Congress to seek support.

In tandem, hectic parleys of the two national parties have reportedly begun with smaller parties.

Sawant’s open invitation to MGP to join hands with BJP has pushed both Congress and new player in Goa politics, TMC, to act fast. TMC is in a pre-poll alliance with MGP.

As per news reports, TMC top guns Abhishekh Banerjee and Derek O’Brien, along with its chief poll strategist Prashant Kishor, are busy on site with efforts to stitch a possible alliance with MGP and Congress if the numbers do not favour the BJP. Party sources told India Today, “The TMC and its allies are open to the idea of an alliance with Congress. If Congress sends any proposal for a post-poll alliance, the top leadership would review it.”

A senior party leader, on condition of anonymity, added, “We (TMC) are in a position to secure nearly three Assembly seats and our ally might get two to three seats. Together, we would be able to win roughly five assembly seats in Goa. And that is a praiseworthy success.” The leader also said, “The Congress has emerged as the single largest party in Goa in the 2017 Assembly polls and yet the BJP managed to form the government. All of us know what unfolded after the results were out. How Congress MLAs were poached. That is the reason we are also staying alert.”

With the BJP chief minister openly talking about reaching out to the MGP for the required numbers to form the next government, the TMC is naturally wary of that regional party breaking its pre-poll alliance if the TMC fails to corner any seat. 

Meanwhile, in a bid to not repeat the 2017 fiasco in Goa, the Congress has dispatched a set of senior leaders to the state and has particularly tasked its strategist and Karnataka state unit chief D.K. Shivakumar to take over the reins. Sources in the Congress have told Deccan Herald that Shivakumar will camp in the state for three days “to ensure that the grand old party, which missed a chance to form the government by a whisker in the last Assembly elections, does not commit the same mistakes again.”

News reports also said that the party on March 8 evening moved all its 37 candidates to a resort in North Goa to ensure no ‘horse trading’ attempts by the BJP is successful.

With TMC-MGP possibly playing kingmaker in Goa, one cannot discount the independents, including the former chief minister and BJP rebel leader Laxmikant Parsekar, former Congress MLA Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco, and deputy chief minister and BJP leader Chandrakant Kavlekar’s wife Savitri Kavlekar.

In Uttarakhand, a similar picture

Hectic parleys can be seen unfolding in Uttarakhand too where also the exit polls have predicted a hung assembly. Local reports said top leaders from both BJP and Congress, the two major contenders, have rushed in to “manage” a situation that might arise after tomorrow’s counting.

A TOI report said, “While BJP rushed senior leader Kailash Vijayvargiya on Sunday (March 6) to assist party leader and former CM Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank in preparing for any political exigency, Congress deputed Rajya Sabha MP Deepender Hooda to Dehradun on Tuesday (March 8). Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel is scheduled to arrive in the city on Wednesday (March 9) and stay put in the state capital till things take a final shape after the results.”

The report added, “As BJP seniors went into a huddle almost immediately after converging in Dehradun, the Congress brass, including Hooda and state in-charge Devender Yadav held a series of meetings. In case of a hung assembly in the 70-member House, the kingmakers will play a big role in government formation. If sources are to be believed, both Congress and BJP have already reached out to regional parties and ‘strong’ independents, candidates who have a good chance of winning from their seats.”

Manipur

In Manipur, where like in Goa of 2017, BJP formed a coalition government even though Congress emerged as the single largest party, other contenders are taking the exit poll results with a pinch of salt. The exit polls have given the BJP a clear majority.

Muchi Mithi, the Arunachal unit head of the National people’s Party (NPP) tweeted, “I am bombarded with exit polls of Manipur but I still hold my ground firmly. We will be the largest party in Manipur.”

On March 4, a day before the final phase of polling in the north-eastern state, Congress in charge for Manipur, Jairam Ramesh, held a press conference in Imphal accusing the Modi government of trying to buy voters by paying influential local militant groups Rs 16.63 crore under the Ministry of Home Affairs’ suspension of operation scheme in the state in the run up to the polls.

eople wait in queues to cast their votes at a polling station, during the repolls of few Manipur Assembly constituencies. Photo: PTI

Calling it a shocking violation of the Model of Conduct the, Ramesh said, “The Union Home Ministry and the BJP State Government in Manipur released Rs 15.7 crores on 1.2.22 and  further Rs 92.7 lakhs on 1.3.22 to banned militant groups under Suspension of Operation(SoO). This has made a mockery of elections in four districts.”

He said, “These payments have ensured that elections in Churachandpur and Kangpokpi districts in the first phase on February 28 have not been free, fair and peaceful. These bribes to banned militant groups under the Suspension of Operation would also influence the elections in Tengnoupal and Chandel districts in the second phase on March 5.”

Punjab

In Punjab, where most exit polls have given AAP a clear majority, the two other contenders – Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) – are yet to lay down their guards.

SAD leader Sukhibir Singh Badal told reporters on March 9 that he has no trust on the exit polls and such exercises need to be banned.  

Uttar Pradesh

In Uttar Pradesh, where a close fight was anticipated between the BJP and the Samajwadi Party (SP) contesting the polls in alliance with the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) and some other smaller parties, the exit polls have given the ruling party a thumping majority.

This comes in spite of multiple news reports in the last few weeks of the ground slipping from under BJP’s feet at several places. Above all, the prime minister himself had to camp at Varanasi and roll out a public relations exercise particularly through the electronic media to ensure that his party holds on to all the seats from a constituency he represents at parliament.

On March 8, SP president and former state chief minister Akhilesh Yadav accused the state administration of conducting “EVM fraud” and “vote theft” in Varanasi. In a press meet at Lucknow, he said, “Varanasi DM (district magistrate) is transporting EVMs without giving any information to local candidates. The Election Commission (EC) should look into it. We need to be alert if the EVMs are being transported this way. This is theft. We need to save our votes. We may go to court against it but before that, I want to appeal to people to save the democracy.”

Samajwadi Party workers stop the convoy shifting EVMs and stage a protest over the alleged replacement of EVMs used in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, in Varanasi, Tuesday, March 8, 2022. Photo: PTI

Yadav’s serious allegations come after video clips emerged on social media on Tuesday showing EVMs being transported in trucks. However, The Wire has not been able to independently verify the authenticity of these videos.

For the BJP, a lot is riding on these elections, particularly in UP which has 403 seats in the assembly. “Notably, apart from the future prospects of leaders like Adityanath, Akhilesh and his allies, the results from UP will also impact the Presidential elections due in July when President Ramnath Kovind completes his term,” a news report in The Tribune has pointed out. While the value of the vote of an MP is around 708, “that of an MLA depends upon the population of the state according to the Census and the number of elected members of the House.”

“The value is highest for a UP legislator (208) and lowest for Sikkim (7),” underlined the report.

By the end of March 10, it will be clear if the March 7 exit poll results on UP go the way the exit polls of the last assembly elections – in West Bengal – did.

In Goa, 7 Powerful Families Are Contesting 35% of the Assembly Seats

Parties including Bharatiya Janata Party, Trinamool Congress and Congress, have given tickets to multiple members of the same family. 

Members of seven families are candidates in 35% of Goa’s assembly seats – in 14 out of a total 40. Parties including Bharatiya Janata Party, Trinamool Congress and Congress, have given tickets to multiple members of the same family.

BJP, which often claims to be against dynastic politics and purportedly has a “one family, one ticket” policy, has nominated four candidates from two families in Goa.

BJP has given Goa’s current health minister Vishwajit Rane a ticket from Valpoi and also fielded his wife Deviya Rane from the adjoining Poriem constituency.

In last one month, Poriem in North Goa became a talking point after Congress declared Deviya’s father-in-law – the state’s longest serving chief minister and 11-time MLA from the constituency – Pratapsingh Rane as candidate for the 2022 assembly election.

Soon after Congress announced Pratapsingh’s candidature, his son Vishwajit told reporters, “I will be contesting from Poriem constituency for BJP. My father is 82 years old and it is not an age to promote oneself. Why does he have to continue in politics? A person who is my idol and someone I have so much respect for, that person should gracefully retire. It will be a very messy situation.”

The saffron party ultimately fielded Deviya and just a day before the last date for filing nomination papers, on January 27, Pratapsingh withdrew from the fray. He had been representing the seat since 1972 and had been steady in declaring that he would contest from the seat right until he bowed out.

Interestingly, just two days before the poll dates were announced by the Election Commission of India (ECI), the BJP government in Goa conferred lifelong cabinet status on the Congress stalwart.


BJP has nominated revenue and information technology minister Jennifer Monserrate from Taleigao constituency. Her husband Atanasio Monserrate, popularly known as Babush, is the BJP candidate from Panjim constituency.

However, while the saffron party gave a ticket to Goa’s deputy chief minister Chandrakant Babu Kavlekar, it denied a ticket to his wife Savitri.

Soon after the announcement of the BJP candidate list, Savitri resigned as the vice-president of the Mahila Morcha (women’s wing) of Goa BJP and will contest as an independent candidate from the constituency.

After Savitri was denied a ticket by the saffron party, she held a press conference and said, “The BJP has denied me a ticket despite assurances. It has double standards as it has allotted tickets to other husband-wife duos in Taleigao and Poreim. I feel betrayed.”

BJP has remained silent and does not appear to have taken action against Chandrakant for Savitri’s presser.

Speaking to this reporter in December, BJP candidate from Sanguem, Subhash Phal Dessai, had said, “Chandrakant’s wife, Savitri is looking for a ticket from this constituency, but the state leadership has assured me that I will get the nomination. Party leadership has chosen me for two reasons, I am a local leader who has been working in the constituency despite losing the 2017 election, and I am BJP’s winning candidate while Savitri is not.”

TMC

Trinamool Congress, which created a lot of buzz since it decided to contest the polls in Goa, gave tickets to four candidates from two families. After the veteran politician and former Nationalist Congress Party MLA Churchill Alemao switched over to TMC, the party nominated him from the Beaulim constituency. It has also nominated his daughter Valanka Alemao from the neighbouring Navelim constituency.

Also read: Goa Elections: With First List, TMC Plays ‘Revenge Politics’, Targets Congress, GFP

Recently in a television interview, when asked about the issue of dynastic politics, Churchill said, “Why are you asking about politicians? Why not ask doctors and engineers [whose children take up the same professions as their parents]?”

Likewise, TMC inducted former Thivim MLA Kiran Kandolkar, who was with Goa Forward Party, and fielded him from Aldona constituency. The party has nominated his wife Kavita from the Thivim seat.

The TMC has decided to join hands with Goa’s oldest party, the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party for the upcoming assembly polls. Sudin Dhavalikar is a five-time MLA from the MGP’s bastion, Marcaim. He will be contesting from the same seat. Meanwhile, MGP president and Sudin’s younger brother Deepak Dhavalikar will contest from Priol constituency in North Goa.

Congress

While Congress took a stand that it will not nominate more than one member from a family, the policy was overlooked after BJP MLA and minister Michale Lobo joined the party. On January 12, Michale, along with his wife Delilah, joined Congress.

The grand old party eventually fielded Michale from his home turf Calangute and nominated Delilah from the adjoining Siolim constituency. Lobo’s close aide, Kedar Naik also got a Congress nomination from neighbouring Saligao constituency.

Candidates family members appear to contest from constituencies adjacent to their relatives. This gives these powerful families a unique advantage to extend their political clout beyond their own respective constituencies.

Noted advocate and political analyst from the state, Cleofato Coutinho tells The Wire, “Earlier we had constituency strongmen, now they have extended their hold to the taluka-level. With fewer electors per constituency, these strongmen leaders have been easily manipulating floating voters with their money and muscle power. Parties ought to have taken a firm stand on dynastic politics as it has serious democratic repercussions. People like Babush and Vishwajit have no moral, ideological or democratic standpoint. In case of a hung assembly, the value of these ‘family lawmakers’ increases exponentially.”

The trend of nominating multiple members from a powerful family dates back to 1960s, when Goa’s first chief minister and founder of MGP Bhausaheb Bandodkar brought his daughter Shashikala Kakodkar into active politics. Shashikala later became Goa’s second chief minister.

In 2017, Congress nominated two members each from the Rane, Monserrate and Kavlekar families. The Ranes and Monserrates got tickets in North Goa, and the Kavlekars in South Goa.

Veteran Goa journalist and author, Sandesh Prabhudesai in his book Ajeeb Goa’s Gajab Politics writes, “With the advent of the 21st century began the era of Family Raj politics. The trend of Family Raj in politics coincides with the increasing trend of converting agricultural land into settlement and selling it to land sharks.”

Speaking to The Wire, Prabhudesai said this phenomena progresses across the party lines thanks to business interest and especially, the politics of land. “All are involved in land dealings. The wealth is shared; ministry portfolios or lucrative positions are shared and it also becomes convenient to defect,” he added.

Watch | The Wire Election Bulletin: Highlights Ahead of Assembly Polls 2022

In Uttar Pradesh, RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary rejected Shah’s offer to join the BJP ahead or post UP elections, while in Goa, Manohar Parrikar’s son Utpal filed his nomination from the Panaji assembly seat.

In this episode of The Wire Election Bulletin, we bring to you all the news related to the forthcoming assembly elections.

Swati Singh, the minister of state (independent charge) for women’s welfare in the UP government, and her husband Dayashankar Singh, the BJP state vice-president, were both in the race to get the party ticket to contest from Sarojini Nagar in Lucknow. The BJP chose Dayashankar as the candidate instead of Swati.

Late former Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar’s son Utpal filed his nomination from the Panaji assembly seat as an independent candidate, after he was excluded from the BJP’s list of candidates for the election in the state.

The Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party has announced 117 candidates in UP.

Union home minister Amit Shah reached out to Jat leaders of western UP, who form a substantial share of the population in the seats to be contested in the first phase of the polls. Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary rejected Shah’s offer to join it ahead or post Uttar Pradesh elections.

Goa: Manohar Parrikar’s Son Utpal Quits BJP, to Contest From Panaji as Independent

He said that he is ready to withdraw from the poll race if the saffron party fields a “good candidate” from the constituency.

New Delhi: Denied ticket from Panaji, Utpal Parrikar, former Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar’s son, on Friday quit the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and decided to contest as an independent candidate.

The younger Parrikar will contest the February 14 assembly elections in the state from Panaji, his late father’s constituency. However, he added that he is ready to withdraw from the race if the saffron party fields a “good candidate” from the constituency.

The ruling BJP nominated sitting MLA Atanasio Monserrate from Panaji – which Manohar Parrikar had represented for over two decades. Monserrate is one of ten legislators who had joined the saffron party in July 2019 after quitting the Congress.

“I tried my best to convince my party during the last election (2019 bypoll after Manohar Parrikar’s death) and this election that I enjoy the support of all the workers who have been with this party for the last 30 years. They toiled with my father to build this party and now they are toiling with me. I also enjoy the support of the general population of Panaji. In spite of that I have not been able to get the candidature of Panaji constituency,” Utpal, 40, told the Indian Express after resigning from the BJP on Friday evening.

Parrikar said that the BJP as an organisation is “crumbling” in Goa. “When [BJP chief J.P. Nadda] came to Goa, there were five couples, who had sought party tickets [for the next month’s polls]. Had Manohar Parrikar been alive, not a single male politician would have dared to seek ticket for his wife,” he claimed.

“I was left with no other choice. I have resigned from the party and I would be contesting as an independent from Panaji,” he told the news agency.

He also said that resignation was a formality but the BJP will “always remain in my heart”.

Also read: Ground Report: Goa Wants Change, but Isn’t Sure Who to Vote For

“It is a difficult choice for me, I am doing it for the people of Goa. No one should be worried about my political future, people of Goa will do it,” he said.

The BJP had offered him “other options” (constituencies other than Panaji), Parrikar said.

“I am fighting for the values which I believe in. Let the people of Panaji decide. I cannot negotiate with my party,” he added.

Asked whether he would seek the support of other political parties, he said the only platform for him was the BJP.

Parrikar also claimed that denying a ticket to him is similar to the situation in 1994, when attempts were made to throw his father out of the party. “The one who has been witness to the history will understand what I am saying. It was the time when the BJP was trying to establish itself in areas where the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) was prominent,” he said.

“Those who have been with the party since then will know what I am saying. That time, Manohar Parrikar could not be thrown out because he enjoyed the support of the people,” he said, adding that “those people” (who were against his father) are still in the party holding “high positions”.

On Thursday, the BJP’s Goa in-charge Devendra Fadnavis had said while releasing the first list of candidates that the party offered some other seats to Utpal, but he was not willing to contest from any of them.

Earlier in the day, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said his party, which had formed a tie-up with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) for the Goa elections, would support Parrikar if he promised not to back the BJP after the elections.

On Thursday, Aam Aadmi Party leader and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had slammed the BJP for adopting a “use and throw” policy regarding the Parrikar family and invited Utpal to join his party.

(With PTI inputs)

Congress Discussing Tie-up With NCP, MGP and GFP for 2022 Goa Polls

All these parties are of the view that Goa needs to be rid of a ‘corrupt and communal’ government led by the BJP, said AICC Goa desk in-charge Dinesh Gundu Rao.

Panaji: The Congress is holding talks for a prospective alliance with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Goa Forward Party (GFP) and the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) for the Goa assembly elections, due early next year, a Congress office-bearer said on Monday.

All India Congress Committee (AICC) Goa desk in-charge Dinesh Gundu Rao told reporters that all these parties are of the view that Goa needs to be rid of a “corrupt and communal” government led by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

“The main aim of this alliance, if it materialises, will be to give a stable government in Goa for five years,” he said.

The polls are due in Goa in February next year.

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

The GFP and the MGP had been part of the BJP-led government for some time in the last five years.

Underlining Congress’s strategy for the elections, Rao said his party is open for a tie-up with the people who understand Goa, belong to the soil and understand the Goan culture and community.

In the 2017 Goa assembly polls, Congress had won the highest 17 seats in the 40-member House restricting the BJP at 13. However, the BJP allied with regional parties to form a coalition government under the leadership of the late Manohar Parrikar.

Over the last five years, Congress lost 13 MLAs to opposition parties, mostly BJP. Senior Congress leader and MLA Luizinho Faleiro recently joined the TMC.

(PTI)

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

According to sources The Wire spoke with, TMC is riding the media hype and is not present on the ground.

On October 29, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee embarked on her Goa quest. On the next day, tennis legend Leander Paes joined Trinamool Congress (TMC) along with  actor-turned-politician Nafisa Ali.

National media extensively covered the new political development in the coastal state. But Friday’s developments are last minute fillers as the actual plan did not work out. TMC was planning to merge a regional party in Goa and announce their face in the state.

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee offers prayer at Tapobhumi Math, in Goa. Photo: PTI

TMC’s plunge in Goa was strategised on three broad calculations. The state has a substantial minority population, small constituency size. And in the state’s political landscape, there is considerable space beyond the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress.

Goa has a minority population of over 32%, of whom 25% are Christians and a little over 8% are Muslims. In the last election, in almost 30% of the seats or 11 assembly segments, the margin of victory was less than 1,500 votes. In terms of overall election result, 25% of the seats were won by local parties and independent candidates.

Back in 2017, Vijay Sardesai, former deputy chief minister of Goa and the president of Goa Forward Party (GFP) ditched Congress and played an instrumental role in forming the BJP government in the coastal state.

Currently, Sardesai is again playing an important role in the state’s political development. A close aide of Sardesai confirmed to The Wire that he had “few rounds of meeting” with the members of Prashant Kishore’s Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC).

Media reports on a possible GFP-TMC merger said that party president Sardesai will join the new entrant in the state when Bengal chief minister visits Goa at the end of October.

GFP was also in touch with Congress for a pre-poll alliance, however, the state unit of Congress had objections. But then, last week, in a quick turn of events, with some All India Congress Committee (AICC) members’ intervention, the central leadership of Congress gave a green signal to the alliance with the GFP for the upcoming election in Goa. The final contours of the alliance are yet to be decided.

On October 27, Sardesai put to rest all speculation and rejected TMC’s offer.

“PROUD TO BE A GOEMKAR! And I will always be! Those who speak of us merging our identity do not understand who we are. Goa Forward Party was born in Goa, grew up in Goa, and will always stand up and fight for Goa. This is who we are!” Sardesai said on Twitter.

On October 30, Saturday morning, Sardesai met TMC supremo in Goa and told the media, “You cannot just merge. If the road to India starts from Goa, there has to be a convergence of like-minded entities.”

Sardesai told The Wire that his party has spoken to the Congress for a possible alliance but the deal is yet to be finalised. “I am open to each and everyone who is serious in defeating the BJP in Goa. My opinion is all anti-BJP forces in Goa should unite and bring the BJP down to a single digit.” When asked about his meeting with Banerjee, he said, “Mamata Banerjee is the pride of a regional party, mine is also a regional party and we both wanted to defeat the BJP in Goa.”

Speaking on TMC’s entry in Goa, Sardesai said, “No doubt there is a lot of media hype in favour of the TMC. I told Didi, ‘Ekla cholo re’ (walk alone) policy will not work here. We need to fight unitedly against the BJP and defeat them.”

“Prashant Kishor’s I-PAC stepped into Goa with an idea which was never tested in India. The idea is, in five to six months, with the help of I-PAC professionals they will build TMC’s presence in Goa. They started going after leaders from the Congress, regional parties and independent MLAs. They [I-PAC] realised late that the idea was not working. Luizinho Faleiro is among the most unpopular leaders there and in all probability will lose the election, if he contests at all. So they went onto the next person to make him the face of Goa. They are knocking the doors of many persons from various other fields, some of them are laughable,” an independent political analyst who is touring Goa told The Wire on the condition of anonymity.

The Wire has reported that a local media group O Heraldo, an English daily which acts as a political influencer, is currently driving TMC’s narrative. On the day Faleiro moved to the TMC, the newspaper ran the headline: “Goa gets set for a new dawn”. I-PAC also used the same headline in its press note that day. TMC’s official catchline in the state is “A new dawn for Goa”.

Also read: Behind TMC’s Plunge Into Goa’s Electoral Politics, a Media Group Driving the Narrative

‘All over the media and not on ground’

The Wire has learned I-PAC members have also approached Bollywood singer Lucky Ali to join the TMC, but the singer declined the offer. The political consultancy has even reached out to singer Remo Fernandes but later found he is a Portuguese citizen.

On October 9, TMC leader and Rajya Sabha MP, Derek O’Brien, posted his photo with Lucky Ali and Nafisa Ali in a social media platform.

A senior editor of a national daily told The Wire, “There is no TMC in Goa. Everything is run by Prashant Kishor’s consultancy. They are hoping to take advantage of the widespread anti-incumbency of the BJP government and win some seats. But in reality, it is very unlikely. Their (I-PAC/TMC) strategy is not working. TMC is all over the media and not on ground.”

Prashant Kishor. Image: Anindito Mukherjee/Reuters

A senior reporter of a local daily said the TMC is not serious in their business and riding only on media hype. “TMC has not yet formed their organisational committees, no officer bearers were appointed in the state. People in Goa don’t like Luizinho Faleiro, he will not even contest the election. By inducting him into the party, TMC has not gained anything. GFP wants alliance with Congress, they are in advanced talks and likely to finalise the deal soon. Vijay Sardesai meeting Mamata Banerjee is nothing but a ploy to keep speculations alive.”

Political analyst from the state, Cleofato Coutinho, told The Wire, “TMC is in Goa in the name of I-PAC, so the latter’s reputation is at stake more than the TMC. TMC might be thinking that because of small constituencies in Goa, they will win them just by fielding personalities. I don’t see that happening. TMC’s experiment with Faleiro was unsuccessful. Faleiro created national optics. Here it has helped the Congress party. His stock was sinking. Their plan with Vijay Sardesai fell flat, but he may align with TMC later. TMC is just creating a hype cashing on Mamata’s win in Bengal. Actually, TMC has given the incumbent chief minister a reason to smile.”

Political observers opined that the TMC’s operations in Goa are similar to the way the BJP managed their election campaign in Bengal – create media hype, set a narrative, put in huge resources, poach leaders from other parties, induct celebrities and create talking points around the party.

Speaking to The Wire, a Kolkata-based political analyst said, “TMC’s politics in Goa is steered by Prashant Kishor, not any TMC leaders. Their plan is to break Congress completely that has failed. So the TMC has now come up with another plan. But interestingly, TMC’s entry in Goa may give BJP another reason to polarise the society further. Also secular and minority votes might get split because of parties like TMC, Aam Aadmi Party, Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party and help BJP become the largest party in the state.”

On the day Faleiro joined the TMC, while interacting with the media party’s national general secretary and MP Abhishek Banerjee, he said, “Trinamool will fight it out alone in Goa.” But currently, TMC is reaching out to various regional parties in the state.

Independent MLA from the state Rohan Khaunte and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) legislator Churchill Alemao met Banerjee in Dona Paula on Friday. Sources in the TMC have also confirmed that talks are open with people from various sections.

Another senior journalist from Goa, on the condition of anonymity, has confirmed that I-PAC is approaching all the possible names in the political space in the state. People who are not directly involved in politics but have a bend were also approached. “I guess they came with a lot of resources, the whole state is plastered with Banerjee’s photo. They are working out on various permutation and combination before kickstarting the election campaign.”