Congress workers convention held in Siolim on Sunday
Photo Credits: BJP has failed to honour promises made in 2012: Congress
THE GOAN NETWORK
MAPUSA
The Congress on Sunday censured the Bharatiya Janata Party for failing to honour promises it made to Goans on the eve of 2012 assembly elections.
“In the last assembly elections, the BJP lured the Goan voters by promising them the stars and the moon. In return, the Goans received a bag of unfulfilled promises and a spiralling inflation,” said M K Shaikh, Vice President, Goa Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC).
He was speaking at the Congress convention organized by the Siolim Block Congress in the presence of Moti Desai, GPCC Vice President, Yatish Naik, General Secretary, Agnelo Fernandes, General Secretary, former local MLAs Chandrakant Chodankar and Ashok Salgaonkar and sarpanchas and panch members of a couple of panchayats.
It being an election year, the convention was aimed to enthuse die-hard Congress workers and supporters in Siolim constituency.
Slamming the BJP’s divisive politics, Shaikh said that Congress never indulged in religious and caste politics.
“This BJP government has tried to divide the people not only in Goa but throughout the landscape of the country on the basis of religion and caste. We want to ensure that such divisive forces don’t come back to power in 2017,” he said.
He said the Congress respected the mandate given to the BJP by the people of the State in 2012 and set quietly for four years to allow the BJP to administer the State.
“We are in the fifth year and what we have observed is only turnarounds and rising cost of living,” he added.
GPCC General Secretary Yatish Naik stated that the BJP cheated the Goans and had taken them for a ride.
“On the eve of the last elections the BJP made some lofty promises. Four years down the line they have remained just that. Nothing has changed,” Naik said.
“BJP promised 50,000 jobs to the youth. It has promised employment doles and to arrest the rising price rise. Such discredited government, such MLA is not fit for Siolkars,” he said to a loud applause.
He called upon the people of Siolim to bring a Congressman to power in 2017 if they wanted all round development and jobs.
Senior GPCC Vice President Moti Desai exhorted the woman voters to spread the word around to bring Congress back to power.
He requested the Siolim Congress Block to recommend a loyal and hardworking candidate for Siolim constituency.
Vaman Chodankar, observer, Nilesh Vernekar, youth leader, Aishwarya Salgaonkar, Congress Mahila Secretary, Mapusa Block President, Vijay Bhike, Siolim-Marna Sarpanch Sylvester Fernandes and Vinod Palyeka also spoke on the occasion.
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Will take local MLA to task: Palyekar
THE GOAN NETWORK
MAPUSA
Social worker and businessman Vinod Palyekar hit out at the BJP and claimed that the BJP-led government was the most corrupt government the State has ever witnessed.
“There’s competition among the ministers in the government to show off who can make the most money in shortest possible time,” he said, addressing the Congress workers at the convention on Sunday.
“Rates are fixed for various permissions required for constructions,” said Palyekar, who is into real estate business.
“I have access to information about various corrupt activities of the local MLA through the RTI. Very soon, I will file a complaint before the Lokyukta against him,” he said further, to a thunderous applause.
He said the local MLA has created a fear psychosis among the people of Siolim, who refrain to openly speak against him.
Palyekar is considered as one of the serious contenders for the Congress ticket from Siolim constituency. His brother Uday Palyekar contested on Congress ticket and lost to the local MLA in the last assembly election.
