AERIAL VIEW
However, Sawant had some other ideas; he maintained that he would easily get to the majority throughout the last two months. He said that the BJP would get 22 in 2022. He may have missed the figure slightly, but he has achieved the intended desired result.
Those who criticised him as “Pappu” may have to eat up their own words as he has proved to Goa and his higher-ups in BJP that he is a successful and intelligent CM.
The number 20 is just one short of 21, which Manohar Parrikar achieved in 2012 as a CM that too by trying to please the minority community.
But Sawant was different; he did not sway from the BJP’s Hindutva agenda and said there was no need to please anyone as his party works for every Goan. He played his cards so cleverly that the BJP finally ended up winning a seat in Navelim in Salcete taluka.
SURAJ NANDREKAR
Editor, Goemkarponn
Kudos to Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant for smartly tackling all the issues and leading his party to a thumping victory.
The Bharatiya Janata Party has been in the eye of the storm due to several issues like coal, three linear projects, a rise in fuel prices, etc. As the elections drew closer, it looked like the BJP would find it difficult to even get to the double-digit.
However, Sawant had some other ideas; he maintained that he would easily get to the majority throughout the last two months. He said that the BJP would get 22 in 2022. He may have missed the figure slightly, but he has achieved the intended desired result.
Those who criticised him as “Pappu” may have to eat up their own words as he has proved to Goa and his higher-ups in BJP that he is a successful and intelligent CM.
The number 20 is just one short of 21, which Manohar Parrikar achieved in 2012 as a CM that too by trying to please the minority community.
But Sawant was different; he did not sway from the BJP’s Hindutva agenda and said there was no need to please anyone as his party works for every Goan. He played his cards so cleverly that the BJP finally ended up winning a seat in Navelim in Salcete taluka.
The BJP now is in a commanding position and needs just the support of one independent MLA to form the government.
The Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) has been reduced to just two seats, equal to what new entrants Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) got. Finally, it seems like undue importance was given to MGP in the last few days.
But here, too, Sawant and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis has maintained that they would not leave MGP out and would form the government along with them.
On the other hand, the Congress did work hard this time but failed to match up to the skills of Amit Shah, Narendra Modi and Devendra Fadnavis, who played their cards intelligently. Indeed, this election has a lesson or two for the Congress, which worked hard but not smarter.
Also, finally, Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party, which swept the Punjab polls, has finally opened its account in Goa with two seats in Benaulim and Velim. It’s a good beginning for the party, which lost miserably in 2017.
Who knows, with some hard work, they may even get more in 2027.
Another regional party that fared badly was Goa Forward. It seems that the party compromised too much for the victory of their president Vijai Sardesai. They got a bad deal of just three seats from Congress in alliance, which was the turning point.
The TMC failed to open its account despite purchasing the MLAs and leaders.
The TMC, as it seemed like were never here to win; what they wanted was to split votes and hurt the Congress.
For Kiran kandolkar and his wife Kavita Kandolkar, who were firm favourites of winning in Aldona and Thivim, joining TMC proved fatal.
Similarly, even MGP has to face the brunt of the people for aligning with the TMC, which is considered as an anti-Hindu party in Goa.
Prashant Kishor’s I-PAC, considered a master in political strategy, failed miserably in Goa.
So these elections have once again proved that there is nothing like anti-incumbency; it is all about mind games and how to split the Oppositions votes.
Today elections become more of a business and how you plan your strategy.
The BJP has mastered that winning technique, and Congress will have to take a cue out of them to succeed in the future.
