Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: In a significant political development ahead of the Assembly elections, prominent Scheduled Tribe (ST) leader Satyavan Gaonkar from Sanguem, along with his wife Neeta Gaonkar and hundreds of supporters, formally joined the Congress at the Goa Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) headquarters in Panaji on Wednesday.
The induction took place in the presence of AICC Goa In-Charge Manickrao Thakare, GPCC President Girish Chodankar, Working Presidents Adv. Carlos Alvares Ferreira and Sunil Kawthankar, South Goa District Congress President Rajesh Verekar, and other senior party leaders.
Welcoming the new entrants, Thakare said the Congress has consistently worked for the welfare and empowerment of the Scheduled Tribe, Scheduled Caste and Other Backward Classes communities. He asserted that the party has always recognised the Scheduled Tribe community as Adivasis and remained committed to safeguarding their constitutional rights and dignity.
Taking a swipe at the BJP, Thakare alleged that the ruling party prefers the term “Vanvasi” instead of “Adivasi”, and assured that capable ST leaders like Satyavan Gaonkar would be given greater organisational responsibilities within the Congress to strengthen the party and effectively represent the Adivasi community.
GPCC President Girish Chodankar described Gaonkar’s induction as a major boost for the Congress in the tribal belt of Goa, particularly in the Sanguem Assembly constituency. He said the entry of Gaonkar and his supporters would strengthen the party at the grassroots level.
Chodankar also criticised the BJP government, questioning why it had allegedly failed to provide the ₹3,200 crore allocation under the Scheduled Tribe Sub-Plan and reiterating his charge that the ruling party was not serious about providing political reservation for the Scheduled Tribe community in the Goa Legislative Assembly.
“The BJP has no intention of ensuring genuine political representation for the Scheduled Tribe community. It remembers various communities only during elections and uses them as vote banks,” Chodankar alleged.
Among those who joined the Congress were Vishal Naik, Prajok Kurdikar, Francis Fernandes, Putu Gaonkar, Milan Gaonkar, Tanvi Gaonkar, Ruzarian Carvalho, Alex Fernandes, Sanjana Dessai, Anish Gaonkar, Sangam Gaonkar, Krish Gaonkar, Abhay Gaonkar, Vikrant Gaonkar, Pooja Gaonkar, Laxmi Gaonkar, Sanjana Gaonkar and Rupali Naik, besides hundreds of supporters from Sanguem and neighbouring areas.
