Will never align with GFP in Goa: Congress on Sanjay Raut's remarks
Panaji, Dec 2: The Congress will never align with the Goa Forward Party (GFP), a senior leader said on Monday, days after Shiv Sena leader from Maharashtra Sanjay Raut spoke about a prospective anti-BJP front and predicted a "political earthquake" in the coastal state.
Hitting back, GFP president and former deputy chief minister Vijai Saredsai said the lines demarcating the ruling camp and the opposition are getting "blurred" in Goa.
Sardesai's party is a part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the coastal state.
The GFP had had extended support to the Pramod Sawant-led government with all the three MLAs. The party formally withdrew its support to the BJP-led government in July this year, after its MLAs were sacked.
However, the opposition Congress is bitter about Sardesai.
"Sardesai has been sticking to the NDA despite he and two of his MLAs were dropped from the Cabinet in July this year by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant. If Sardesai walks out of the NDA, he would be made another Chidambaram by the BJP," Congress spokesperson Trajano D'Mello told reporters.
A day after the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress government took over in Maharashtra on November 28, Raut had said an anti-BJP coalition would be formed in Goa.
Raut also spoke to leaders of the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) and GFP, both of which are, like the Sena, former BJP allies.
While Sardesai met Raut in Mumbai and supported the Sena's proposal, MGP's Sudin Dhavalikar also said that such a coalition was possible.
"Sardesai has been speaking against CM Sawant but not against the BJP. He claims himself to be like-minded with the Congress, but at the same time, he continues with the NDA.
Sardesai knows that he would be made another P Chidambaram (former Union minister currently in jail) if he dumps the NDA.
There are files against him piled up with the BJP," D'Mello said.
When his comments were sought on Raut's statement, D'Mello said the Congress will never align with the GFP "which ditched the Congress after the 2017 Assembly polls and joined the Manohar Parrikar-led BJP government.
He said the Congress began discussions with the Sena in Maharashtra only after the latter withdrew from the NDA.
The Congress is a ruling constituent of the Sena-led Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in the neighbouring state.
Meanwhile, Sardesai hinted at a "match-fixing" between the Congress and the BJP.
He also said he had never approached the Congress in Goa, as it didn't "represent" the Opposition.
"D'Mello's statements show that the lines between the Opposition and ruling camp are blurred. Now, the Congress is defending the chief minister more vehemently than the BJP, which clearly indicates that match fixing has reached the conclusive stage where the spokesman for the CM happens to be the spokesman from the opposition.
"We have a situation where both the ruling and the opposition have got irreparably fixed," he said.
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BJP says INDIA bloc leaders resorting to politics of 'abuse and intimidation', seeks EC action
New Delhi (PTI): Leaders of the Congress and other INDIA bloc constituents are resorting to politics of "abuse and intimidation", the BJP said on Thursday and urged the Election Commission to take suo motu cognisance of their recent remarks and act against them.
Shehzad Poonawalla, the party's national spokesperson, said during a press conference at the BJP headquarters that Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader Nazrul Islam recently "openly" threatened to "bury" Prime Minister Narendra Modi "400 feet below".
"Nazrul Islam, a leader of the JMM and the 'INDI Alliance', has insulted the country's 'jana shakti (people's power)' by threatening to kill and bury the prime minister, who has been elected by the people of the country," Poonawalla said.
The JMM leader's remark shows the "mindset" of the opposition's INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance) bloc, he charged.
"The Election Commission should take suo motu cognisance of Nazrul Islam's remarks and take action against him immediately," the BJP leader said.
"This politics of abuse, insult and intimidation is not a coincidence but a well thought out plan (of the opposition). Two days ago, a Congress candidate had talked about killing Modi by saying that he would come (win the election) and Modi would die," Poonawalla charged.
Islam on Wednesday apologised for making a derogatory statement against Modi and said his remark was not intended to hurt anyone.
"During a political speech, I was speaking against the prime minister's claim of winning 400 seats. I intended to say that they (BJP-led NDA) would not get 400 seats and they would be out of power," the JMM leader said in a video statement.
The BJP's Jharkhand unit on Tuesday demanded a high-level probe and the arrest of Islam for his remarks against Modi.
Taking on the Congress, Poonawalla alleged that Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar recently threatened residents of a housing society that they would not get water supply if they did not vote for his brother DK Suresh.
Earlier, Karnataka Minister D Sudhakar had "threatened" that a special grant of Rs 25 crore would not be provided if the people did not vote for the Congress candidate, Poonawalla alleged.
"Will people be threatened like this? DK Shivakumar gave an open threat. It's a clear violation of the model code of conduct, Representation of the People Act," the BJP leader said and added, "The Election Commission should take suo motu cognisance of it and take the strictest action against DK Shivakumar and the other Karnataka minister."
The BJP's Karnataka unit on Monday filed a complaint with the Election Commission against Sudhakar for alleged violation of the model code of conduct for his comment during a speech at the Nayakanahatti village of Chitradurga district, promising a special grant of Rs 25 crore from the chief minister.
