Congress stakes claim in Goa, says Legislature Party chief Kavlekar  

The Congress party in Goa, along with their 14 MLAs, have staked claim to form govt in the state. Congress MLAs have submitted the letter to the Raj Bhavan but they have not met the Governor.

The new development comes after the news of rift emerging between the BJP and its alliance partners Goa Forward Party (GFP) and Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) over whether an ailing Manohar Parrikar should retain to the CM’s post or not.

“The party urged the governor not to consider dissolution of the state Legislative Assembly, which is a possibility considering internal fighting in the ruling alliance and illness of Parrikar,” said Chandrakant Kavlekar, Goa Congress Legislature Party leader.

On Sunday, AICC secretary A Chellakumar had said, “Our stand is very clear. We will definitely explore all the possibility but that does not mean that we will do it by compromising the ideology or compromising the interest of Goans. We are not in a hurry to capture the power by compromising people of Goa’s interest. Congress is accountable to the people.”

Goa State Congress Committee president Girish Chodankar has issued a statement which said, “The Congress has never hesitated to play the role of a constructive and effective Opposition, but we will not hesitate to come forward and take responsibility to form a government. We have already cautioned Honorable Governor Her Excellency Dr Mridula Sinha about a possible ploy by the BJP to fraudulently impose President's Rule in Goa, through the back door.”

"We urge her (Governor Sinha) once again, that the Congress should be given an opportunity to form a stable government in Goa, in view of the prevailing political chaos in the state," the statement added.

Meanwhile, the BJP claimed that the government in Goa is stable and there is no demand for change in leadership change.

The ruling BJP has called for a meeting on Monday in presence of BJP’s central observers to take stock of the political situation in view of Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar's illness.

The BJP currently has 14 legislators in the 40-member Assembly, while the GFP and the MGP have three each. The national party is also supported by three Independents.

The Congress has 16 MLAs while the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has one legislator.

This story was edited to include a quote

With inputs from PTI and IANS