BELAGAVI: With elections in Goa drawing closer, it seems extremely unlikely that the non-BJP parties will be able to forge a grand alliance ahead of the February 14 polls as the major players, AAP and Congress are not keen on it with time running out.
Despite the ongoing consistent efforts by All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) to forge a grand alliance, Chief of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Aravind Kejriwal and Congress party Goa poll in-charge P Chidambaram have made it clear that they are not keen on having a non-BJP pre-poll alliance.
After the launch of a `Vision Document' of AAP for Goa ahead of the election at Panaji on Sunday, Kejriwal ruled out teaming up with other parties, mainly TMC before the election.
"We will certainly think of having an alliance of non-BJP parties post-election if the situation demands. However, I feel, AAP will be able to get a clear mandate. In the event of a situation where it becomes necessary to have an alliance, we will certainly think of it after the election," he stated.
Kejriwal hit out at the Congress party in Goa, asking as to why would people vote for it in the coming election. "After the 2017 assembly election in Goa, most of Congress' 17 MLAs joined the BJP. The Congress is left with merely two MLAs in Goa today. The Congress and BJP are the same and the Goans are aware that the candidates of the Congress party will move to BJP if they are elected. It is a certainty that they will switch to the BJP if they win. When that's the situation, why would the people of Goa vote for the Congress," he added.
Speaking to a private news channel in Goa, Chidambaram clearly stated "it's a fight between the BJP and Congress in Goa this time. Commenting on why the Congress was not responding to the TMC's invite for a pre-poll alliance of non-BJP forces, Chidambaram said, the terms and conditions of the alliance which TMC hinted about was not clear.
"It is not clear what they (TMC) have in mind about the structure of a non-BJP alliance. Many things are still unclear like who will be the lead party if there is an alliance," Chidambaram said.
While hinting that the Congress is not keen on having an alliance with TMC, Chidambaram asked why was the TMC poaching the Congress MLAs while the Congress never poached their legislators in Goa.
"In Goa it can be only BJP vs Congress. And of course, if others want to join the Congress in its fight against the BJP, then Congress may have a plus to fight the BJP (plus here is other non-BJP parties). It can only be Congress and "plus" and that's all," said Chidambaram while trying to make it clear that the Congress would be the lead party if there's an alliance and all the other non-BJP parties will only be an addition to the Congress.
Sources in Goa said, it would be a tough task for the Congress alone to fight the BJP as many of its popular leaders elected as MLAs in the 2017 election in Goa switched to the BJP.
"The Congress party is struggling to find candidates in most of the constituencies who are able to win against the BJP candidates. They are left with no choice but to field new faces in at least 21 out of 40 assembly seats in Goa. It will be difficult for the Congress to take on the BJP alone without the support of other non-BJP parties before the elecion," said Suraj Nandrekar, a noted journalist from Goa.
The votes of a large Christian community which rallied behind the Congress in most of the constituencies so far will split with AAP and TMC candidates in the fray, said Nandrekar adding that the BJP would have a huge advantage if the Congress, AAP and TMC fight the elections separately and without having an alliance.
Although, the TMC had been able to poach many of the noted leaders from other parties, it was being seen as an "outsider" in Goa. And that was why it had been trying desperately to forge an alliance of non-BJP forces, said Nandrekar.